BERKELEY 

LIBRARY 

V UNIVERSITY  OP 
CALIFORNIA 


-Iff* 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/eminentactorsintOOhammrich 


Eminent  Actors 
in  Their  Homes 


=2 


V 


Eminent  Actors 
in  their  Homes 


Personal  Descriptions 
and  Interviews 


BY 

MARGHERITA  ARLINA  HAMM 

Twenty  Illustrations 


New  York 

James  Pott   &  Company 

MCMII 


Copyright,    1902,   by 
JAMES    POTT    &    COMPANY 


Enter ed  at  Stationers'    Hall,    London 


First    Impression    March    i,    1902 


Press  of  J.  J.  Little  &  Co. 
Astor  Place,  New  York 


H3 


Preface 

rHE  sketches  which  compose  this 
volume  are  based  upon  personal 
studies  and  interviews  by  the  au- 
thor^ and  are  intended  to  give  the  reader 
a  more  or  less  complete  view  of  the  home- 
life  enjoyed  by  members  of  the  theatrical 
profession.  Nearly  all  of  the  studies  were 
made  within  the  preceding  twelve  months. 
A  few  were  made  prior  to  that  period,  and 
are  founded  upon  memories  rather  than 
memoranda. 

The  author  begs  to  acknowledge  her 
indebtedness  to  the  actors  and  actresses, 
who  are  mentioned  in  this  work,  for  their 
courtesy  and  friendly  aid.  Without  this, 
it  would  have  been  impossible  to  have  gath- 
ered the  material  which  is  here  presented 
for  the  first  time. 

[v] 


069 


Contents 


Page 

Introduction  :     The    Actor    and     His 

Home i 

I.  Edward  H.  Sothern — Virginia 
Harned-Sothern  in  West 
Sixty-ninth  Street,  New  York  .  9 
II.  Richard  Mansfield — Beatrice 
Cameron-Mansfield,  Their 
Lares  and  Penates     ....      25 

III.  Marie  Bates,  Her  Home  in  East 

Thirty-first  Street,  New  York  .      41 

IV.  Elsie    de    Wolfe    at    Her  Own 

Hearth 53 

V.   Minnie  Maddern  Fiske  at  Home     67 

VI.   Annie    O'Neill     at    Home    and 

Abroad 79 

VII.   Edward    Harrigan    at    Schroon 

Lake 91 

VIII.   Annie    Ward     Tiffany    by  the 

Sea-shore 103 

IX.    May  Robson,  the    Domestic  Side 

of  a  Great  Artist  .      .      .      .      .113 
X.    David  Warfield  at  Leisure   .      .125 

[vii] 


Contents 

Page 

XI.   Viola  Allen,  Her  Domestic  Gods   137 
XII.   Francis  Wilson  at  the  Orchard   151 

XIII.  Julia  Marlowe  on  Hearth  and 

Heath 165 

XIV.  Annie  Russell,  Her  Mansion  and 

Bungalow 183 

XV.   Amelia  Bingham  and  Her  Many- 
sided  Home .      .      .      .      .      .    197 

XVI.    Burr  McIntosh  in  Many  Roles   211 

XVII.    Chauncey  Olcott,  the  Domes- 
tic Side  of  a  Nomad      .      .      .223 

XVIII.  James  K.  Hackett — Mary 
Mannering-Hackett,  Their 
Home  Life 237 

XIX.   Mr.  and  Mrs.   Robert  Edeson 

at  Home 251 

XX.   Joseph      Jefferson,     America's 

First  Actor — His  Inner  Life    .    267 

XXI.   Otis    Skinner    in    Town    and 

Woodland 281 

XXII.   William    H.    Crane    and     His 

"  Fishing-Box  "       .      .      .      .291 
[  viii  ] 


Contents 


Page 


XXIII.  Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro, 

Mistress   of  the  Court    Farm, 
Broadway,  Worcestershire.      .    303 

XXIV.  Nat      C.     Goodwin — Maxine 

Elliott-Goodwin,         Their 
Home  on  the  Old  Kent  Road .    313 


Index 


327 


[ix] 


Illustrations 


Interior  of  the  Players'  Club,  Gra- 

mercy  Park,  New  York     .    Frontispiece 

Facing 
Page 

Edward  H.   Sothern, 
Virginia  Harned-Sothern 


.  .}•■ 

A  comfortable  corner  in  their  home. 
Richard  Mansfield,  1  , 

Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield  / 

The  tapestry  room  in  their  home. 

Elsie   de   Wolfe 54 

Her  drawing-room. 
Minnie   Maddern  Fiske  68 

At  home. 
Annie  O'Neill 8o 

And  her  son. 

Edward   Harrigan  92 

His  cottage  at  Schroon  Lake,  New  York. 

Annie  Ward  Tiffany      .      .     .     .     .104 
Her  house  at  Buzzard's  Bay. 

May   Robson 114 

Her  dining-room. 

David  Warfield 126 

His  study. 

[xi] 


Illustrations 

Facing 
Page 

Viola  Allen      .     .     0 138 

Her  boudoir. 
Julia  Marlowe 166 

At  Highmount. 
Annie   Russell 184 

Her  art  treasures. 

Amelia  Bingham 198 

In  her  salon. 
James  K.   Hackett,  ^ 

Mary  Mannering-Hackett  J  ^ 

In  their  study. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.   Robert  Edeson      .     .252 

Their  morning-room. 
Joseph  Jefferson 268 

At  his  easel. 
William  H.    Crane 292 

In  his  "  Fishing-Box." 
Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro  .     .     .   304 

A  portrait. 
Nat  C.   Goodwin,  1 

Maxine  Elliott-Goodwin    J 

In  their  music-room. 


[xii] 


Introduction 
The  Actor  and  His  Home 


Introduction 
The  Actor  and  His  Home 

IN  no  field  of  American  life  has  there  been 
greater  development  than  in  things  the- 
atrical. It  is  difficult  to  realize  how 
vast  a  change  has  occurred  between  the  begin- 
nings of  the  nineteenth  and  the  twentieth  cen- 
turies. One  hundred  years  ago  there  were  few 
places  of  amusement,  and  a  mere  corporal's 
guard  of  actors  and  actresses.  What  playhouses 
existed  were  to  be  found  in  the  larger  cities. 
In  the  smaller  cities  there  was  a  strong  social 
and  religious  prejudice  against  stagecraft,  which 
went  so  far  as  to  oppose  the  mildest  sort  of 
amateur  performances,  and  even  to  point  the 
finger  of  narrow-minded  scorn  at  charades  and 
similar  parlor  entertainments.  There  was  no 
playwright  worthy  of  mention,  and  almost  no 
dramatic  literature  to  be  found  in  any  library. 
The  few  theatres  of  that  time  were  pitiful  in  their 
poverty  and  slender  resources.  The  very  best 
were  inferior  to  those  in  the  larger  towns  of  this 
country  to-day.  The  illumination  was  by  means 
of  candles  and  a  few  lamps.  In  winter  there 
[3] 


Introduction 

was  scarcely  any  heating  apparatus,  so  that  audi- 
ences sat  in  overcoats  and  mufflers,  while  upon 
the  stage  there  was  a  paucity  of  scenery,  cos- 
tumes, paraphernalia,  and  conveniences,  which 
seems  like  a  relic  of  barbarism.  The  playhouses 
were  very  small,  and  the  prices  charged  so  low 
that  it  is  difficult  to  understand  how  managers 
and  actors  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  living.  At 
the  present  time  every  city,  and  nearly  every 
town,  has  one  or  more  theatres.  In  the  larger 
municipalities  they  are  numbered  by  the  score, 
while  in  addition  to  these  are  numerous  halls, 
and  even  parlors,  fitted  with  stages  and  scenery, 
so  that  a  theatrical  performance  can  be  given  at 
a  moment's  notice.  The  illumination  is  of  the 
most  modern  sort,  the  gaslight  of  a  few  years 
ago  having  been  almost  universally  replaced  by 
the  electric  installation.  In  capacity  such  in- 
stitutions as  the  New  York  Metropolitan  Opera 
House  and  the  Chicago  Auditorium  seat,  the 
one  three  thousand  four  hundred,  and  the  other 
eight  thousand  persons.  Our  literature  has  been 
enriched  by  the  contributions  of  more  than 
fifty  dramatists  of  high  and  low  degree,  while 
in  the  past  forty  years  over  two  hundred  volumes 
have  been  written  upon  the  biography,  history, 
art,  and  memorabilia  of  the  stage.  Prices  have 
[4] 


The  Actor  and  His  Home 

grown  in  proportion,  and  the  rewards  of  play- 
wright and  actor  will  now  compare  favorably 
with  those  of  the  wealthy  professions. 

With  this  financial  development  there  has 
been  growth  in  all  other  lines.  The  cheap 
fustian  and  calico  have  been  replaced  by  cos- 
tumes whose  historical  accuracy,  fashionable 
elegance,  and  splendid  luxury  have  in  many 
cases  made  the  play  a  school  of  fashion  and 
historical  research.  The  modern  auditorium  is 
furnished  with  all  the  conveniences  and  beauties 
of  a  home,  and  upon  the  stage  are  expended  the 
best  labors  of  the  painter,  upholsterer,  and  art 
designer.  Wealth  brings  social  recognition  and 
advancement,  and  the  actor  of  to-day  enjoys  a 
fashionable  prestige  unknown  in  the  annals  of 
the  past.  In  many  cases  he  is  a  social  lion 
before  whom  all  kneel  in  homage.  This  very 
wealth  enables  the  professional  to  gratify  his 
personal  and  domestic  tastes  to  an  almost  un- 
limited extent.  Where  the  actor  of  1800  lived 
in  lodgings  or  poor  hotels,  his  successor  of  1902 
occupies  a  city  residence  in  the  winter,  and  a 
country  seat  in  the  summer,  which  in  comfort 
and  enjoy  ability  will  compare  with  those  of  any 
other  prosperous  class  in  the  community. 

The  popular  impression  that  actors  are  nomads 
[5] 


Introduction 

is  not  borne  out  by  the  fact.  Taken  as  a  class 
they  certainly  are  as  domestic  as  people  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits,  and  are  more  so  than 
members  of  the  other  professions.  This,  of 
course,  refers  to  their  tendencies  rather  than  to 
their  actual  living.  The  exigencies  of  their  call- 
ing keep  them  on  the  road  or  away  from  their 
homes  a  large  part  of  every  year ;  but  when  they 
are  at  liberty,  two-thirds  of  them  retire  to  private 
life,  and  generally  lead  as  quiet  and  regular  a 
home-life  as  can  be  imagined. 

While  home-life  generically  is  uniform,  yet 
it  varies  with  each  individual,  and,  to  a  certain 
extent,  with  each  class.  The  theatrical  profes- 
sion is  one  which  calls  for  mental  rather  than 
physical  exercise,  and  involves  study,  knowledge, 
and  training.  These  become  matters  of  habit, 
so  that  an  actor  in  vacation  time  is  usually 
prone  to  adopt  modes  of  recreation  which  in- 
volve intellectual  effort.  As  might  be  supposed, 
it  is  usually  of  a  different  sort  from  the  work 
of  the  remainder  of  the  year.  A  majority  pur- 
sues some  pleasant  hobby  or  fad,  such  as  floricul- 
ture, horticulture,  art-photography,  and  paint- 
ing, nature  study,  or  exploration.  Many  devote 
themselves  to  reading  on  a  large  scale;  several 
cultivate  the  muse  or  pursue  courses  of  severe 
[6] 


The  Actor  and  His  Home 

study.  Among  the  favorite  recreations  are  fish- 
ing, hunting,  riding,  driving,  swimming,  sailing, 
travel  at  home  and  abroad,  social  reunions,  and 
forest  parties. 

In  the  selection  of  its  homes,  the  majority 
prefers  to  be  near  a  large  city  or  summer  resort. 
Only  a  minority  cares  to  get  away  as  far  as 
possible  from  city  life.  Nearly  all  prefer  a 
home  to  a  hotel.  Almost  every  summer  num- 
bers of  them  form  little  colonies,  but  these  are 
seldom  permanent.  Of  late  years  there  has 
been  a  noticeable  tendency  toward  having 
homes,  especially  summer  homes,  in  the  suburbs 
of  the  large  cities.  In  this  respect  they  have 
followed  the  example  of  the  opulent  element  of 
New  York,  which  is  gradually  converting  the 
environs  of  the  metropolis  into  a  series  of  coun- 
try seats  and  family  estates. 

Their  home-life  is  notable  for  its  variety  and 
hospitality.  An  actor's  mode  of  living  tends 
to  develop  cosmopolitanism  and  a  love  of  art, 
literature,  and  music.  His  opportunities  for 
securing  oddities  and  curios  are  numerous,  and 
nearly  all  take  full  advantage  of  the  situation.  In 
this  way,  by  degrees,  their  homes  become  filled 
with  objects  of  beauty  and  interest,  until  many 
of  them  are  little  museums.  In  furniture  and 
[7] 


Introduction 

household  decoration  they  exhibit  admirable 
taste,  and  nearly  every  residence,  both  city  and 
country,  is  a  joy  to  the  art-loving  critic.  The 
hospitality  for  which  the  profession  is  famous  is 
merely  one  side  of  a  warm,  generous,  and  un- 
prejudiced disposition.  Upon  the  stage  there  is  a 
fraternal  feeling  and  an  altruistic  sentiment  which 
are  partly  a  survival  of  past  conditions  and  partly 
the  expression  of  existing  tendencies.  There  was 
a  time  when  it  was  a  vital  necessity  for  players 
to  act  upon  the  motto  of  "The  Three  Guards- 
men," cc  One  for  all,  and  all  for  one."  The 
necessity  no  longer  exists,  but  the  conditions  and 
emotions  to  which  it  gave  rise  are  still  a  delight- 
ful feature  of  theatrical  life.  This  aiding  the 
unfortunate  is  universal,  as  is  the  extension  of 
good-fellowship  to  all  who  come  within  the 
domestic  circle.  The  stage  is  allied  with  the 
press,  the  studio,  and  the  sanctum.  The  four 
callings  in  many  respects  form  one  brotherhood, 
and  in  the  thespian  home  may  be  found  the 
editor,  poet,  painter,  and  playwright  as  honored 
guests.  Those  who  have  had  the  opportunity 
of  joining  these  circles  will  bear  testimony  to 
the  happy  atmosphere  of  intellectuality,  kindli- 
ness, and  brilliancy  which  from  time  immemorial 
has  been  their  characteristic. 
[8] 


Edward  H.    Sothern 
Virginia   Harned- Sothern 

In  West  Sixty-ninth  Street,  New  York 


£ 

S 


^ 
d 


k 

c3 


<3 


I 

Edward  H.  Sothern 
Virgin ia    Harned-  Sothern 

In  West  Sixty-ninth  Street^  New  York 

A  S  you  stroll  from  Columbus  Avenue 
ZJm  along  Sixty-ninth  Street  to  Central 
-^L  *M*  Park,  your  eye  is  bound  to  rest  with 
delight  upon  one  of  the  many  handsome  build- 
ings which  mark  that  thoroughfare..  In  its 
type  it  is  like  the  adjacent  mansions,  being 
tall,  well-built,  and  showing  the  best  effort  of 
the  builder;  but  in  its  external  decoration  it  is 
so  unique  as  to  be  an  oasis  in  the  architectural 
desert  of  the  block.  In  front  of  the  windows 
is  graceful  Venetian  iron-work  fashioned  after 
the  finest  designs  of  the  Renaissance.  The 
curving  lines  of  each  grillage  form  a  space 
which  has  been  utilized  by  the  owners  for  a 
miniature  garden,  where  evergreens  add  color 
to  the  house  front.  Japanese  dwarf  plants  sug- 
gest travel  in  the  antipodes,  and  swaying  vines 
recall  Tennyson's  description  of  the  land  of  the 
Lotus-Eaters. 

["] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

Artists  pause  to  smile  approval  as  they  pass 
by,  and  the  camera  fiend  seems  never  to  tire  of 
taking  snapshots  of  the  place.  This  is  the 
home  of  Edward  H.  Sothern,  the  great  actor, 
and  his  brilliant  wife,  who  upon  the  boards  is 
known  still  by  her  maiden  name  of  Virginia 
Harned.  Here  they  are  to  be  found  when  not 
engaged  in  the  active  pursuit  of  their  calling, 
and  here  they  hold  open  house  to  the  circle 
of  friends  and  admirers  of  which  they  are  the 
joint  centre. 

When  you  pass  the  portal,  you  find  that  the 
element  of  individuality  is  not  confined  to  the 
exterior.  If  possible,  it  is  more  marked  within 
than  without.  It  is,  of  course,  difficult  to  pro- 
duce much  variety  within  the  narrow  limits 
prescribed  by  the  domestic  architecture  of  New 
York  City,  but  within  these  limits  the  clever  oc- 
cupants have  fairly  exhausted  their  ingenuity  in 
devising  pleasing  effects  and  artistic  surroundings. 
The  hall,  wide  and  roomy,  seems  to  say,  "  Wel- 
come." Old-fashioned  furniture  lying  loosely 
around  invites  you  to  sit  down  and  rest.  Riding 
whips,  canes,  and  golf-sticks  indicate  the  love 
of  the  open  air  and  of  athletic  sport  on  the  part 
of  both  master  and  mistress.  Mild  tints,  dashes 
of  scarlet   and   gold,   pictures   and    decorations 

[12] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

attract  attention  from  the  door  to  every  part  of 
the  household.  The  wide,  winding  stair  allows 
the  visitor  to  look  upward  and  see  the  richly 
bannistered  landings,  rising  tier  upon  tier  over- 
head. It  also  permits  a  mild  current  of  air  to 
flow  freely  through  the  house,  taking  away  the 
closeness  and  feeling  of  confinement  which  too 
often  mark  even  the  residences  of  the  wealthy. 
In  the  daytime  the  hall,  as  well  as  the  house, 
is  bathed  in  sunlight ;  but  in  the  evening,  at  the 
touch  of  a  button,  the  interior  is  flooded  with 
electric  light.  Even  in  the  illumination  appears 
the  touch  of  the  artist.  Around  each  incandes- 
cent bulb  is  a  shade  or  lily  of  red,  varying  from 
pink  to  flame  color,  which  modifies  the  light 
just  enough  to  suggest  the  rose  blush  of  the 
dawn  or  the  fiery  glories  of  the  sunset.  The 
comfortable  stairs  afford  easy  access  to  the  first, 
or  main  floor,  which  is  divided  into  a  number 
of  large  apartments  whereof  the  chief  are  the 
salon  and  the  dining-room.  The  hall  itself  may 
be  considered  an  apartment  and  is  so  treated  in 
its  decoration.  It  might  be  called  the  Hall  of 
Engravings,  so  many  are  the  works  of  art  of  that 
class  which  cover  its  surface.  They  are  of 
every  kind,  and  each  a  masterpiece  in  its  own 
way.  There  are  portraits  and  figure  pieces, 
[13] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

marines  and  landscapes,  historical  and  theatrical 
scenes,  bits  of  humor  and  touches  of  sentiment; 
in  fact,  the  entire  gamut  of  emotion,  fancy,  and 
memory  is  run  upon  this  wall  in  black  and  white. 
The  artistic  treatment  adds  materially  to  the 
ensemble ;  the  dark  wood,  which,  unrelieved, 
would  weary  the  eye  with  its  monotony,  being 
touched  here  and  there  with  glints  of  restful 
color. 

The  salon,  or  drawing-room,  gives  the  im- 
pression of  ease  and  serenity.  The  chromatic 
scheme  is  in  serpent-green  and  silver,  with  suffi- 
cient suggestion  of  other  tints  to  add  agreeable 
variety.  The  furniture  is  harlequin  and  em- 
bodies the  best  designs  of  the  Louis  Quatorze, 
Louis  Quinze,  and  Louis  Seize  periods.  There 
is  nothing  garish  or  jarring.  It  is  a  place  where 
a  woman  wants  to  sit  and  chat,  and  a  man  likes 
to  lounge  and  to  consume  a  favorite  Havana. 

In  one  corner  is  a  grand  piano  of  superb  tone. 
A  pile  of  well-thumbed  music  bears  testimony 
to  a  favorite  recreation  of  the  inmates.  To  pass 
from  the  salon  to  the  dining-room  is  like  going 
from  the  French  Court  to  a  German  baronial 
hall  by  way  of  the  Netherlands.  The  in- 
termediate hall  is  delightfully  Dutch.  Solid 
Amsterdam  furniture  and  substantial  decorations 
[14] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

from  The  Hague  suggest  our  Knickerbocker 
ancestors  or  the  luckless  Boers  of  South  Africa. 
The  feature  of  the  dining-room  is  the  collection 
of  heads  of  game  animals  which  are  royally 
mounted,  and  glare  through  artificial  eyes  at  the 
visitor.  Over  the  mantel,  which  is  a  matchless 
piece  of  skilful  carving,  is  the  head  of  a  wild 
boar,  the  largest,  it  is  believed,  in  the  United 
States.  So  deftly  has  the  taxidermist  finished  it 
that  it  seems  alive  and  devoured  by  bloodthirsty 
fury.  Its  gleaming  tusks  stand  out  as  formi- 
dable and  threatening  as  those  of  an  infuriated 
tiger,  and  the  spiny  bristles  and  iron-like  mus- 
cles of  the  throat  tell  an  eloquent  story  of  the 
animal's  deadly  strength  and  vigor.  Across  the 
room  is  the  head  of  the  animal  which  has  been 
immortalized  by  Thompson-Seton — the  Rocky 
Mountain  Sheep.  The  large,  telescopic,  and 
peaceful  eyes ;  the  vast,  curling  horns  ;  the  broad 
forehead;  the  mild,  inoffensive  mouth;  and  the 
kindly,  half-fearful  and  half-courageous  expres- 
sion, betray  the  character  of  the  king  of  the 
Rocky  Mountain  game  world — a  king  whose 
days  are  numbered  and  whose  name  will  soon 
be  a  memory.  At  other  places  are  heads  of  the 
three  giants  of  the  deer  family,  the  reindeer,  the 
moose,  and  the  caribou.  Each  is  a  poem  in 
[15] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

itself — the  reindeer,  clumsy,  strong,  half-domes- 
ticated, patient,  and  long-suffering;  the  moose, 
massive,  melancholy,  introspective,  and  brood- 
ing apparently  over  the  decay  of  his  race ;  and 
the  caribou,  alert,  electric,  and  the  very  embodi- 
ment of  animal  fear. 

Standing  in  the  centre  of  the  room,  with  the 
princely  host,  you  feel  the  savage  joy  of  the 
hunter  and  the  milder,  higher  pleasure  of  the 
naturalist.  The  furniture  is  old  German,  in 
black  oak  and  green  tapestry,  and  here  and  there 
are  the  noble  pewters  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
some  graceful,  some  grotesque,  some  overflow- 
ing with  aesthetic  beauty,  and  others  with  grim, 
sardonic  humor;  but  all  indicative  of  royal 
appetites  on  the  part  of  their  dead  owners.  But 
the  star  of  the  drinking  utensils  is  the  ugliest 
object  in  the  room.  In  spite  of  its  ugliness,  its 
historical  associations  render  it  priceless  to  the 
collector's  heart.  It  is  an  awkward  tankard  of 
dark  leather — leather  of  which  Holmes  might 
have  written,  "  Found  in  the  pit  when  the  tanner 
died."  It  is  a  " Black  Jack,"  such  as  was  used 
by  the  soldiery  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries,  before  tin  cups  and  telescopic  drinking 
vessels  were  invented.  This  alone  would  make 
it  of  interest;  but  the  "  Black  Jack"  in  question 
[16] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

was  one  which  belonged  to  the  great  Protector, 
Oliver  Cromwell,  and  pressed  his  stern  lips  in 
nearly  every  battle,  where  his  genius  revolution- 
ized Great  Britain  and  made  England  the  Mis- 
tress of  the  Seas.  Here,  too,  are  steins  ranging 
from  the  humble  stone-ware  of  the  poor  student 
of  the  German  University  clubs  up  to  the  mag- 
nificent, decorated  affairs  of  the  Junkers,  or 
young  nobility.  Most  impressive  of  all  is  the 
silver  chest,  which  contains  pieces  representing 
the  lives  and  labors  of  both  the  owners,  as  well 
as  of  the  immortal  comedian,  Edward  Askew 
Sothern,  the  father  of  the  master  of  the  house- 
hold. With  characteristic  modesty  the  contents 
are  kept  invisible,  except  upon  the  occasions 
when  they  are  brought  out  to  decorate  the  family 
board.  Each  piece  has  a  history  attached.  All 
represent  affection  and  admiration,  and  each  tells 
the  story  of  some  artistic  triumph  or  histrionic 
feat. 

To  the  lover  of  the  stage  the  most  interesting 
part  of  the  house  is  the  floor  above  the  drawing- 
room,  whose  chief  apartment  is  the  library. 
This  is  the  favorite  resort  of  master  and  mistress 
and  of  their  intimate  friends.  To  the  student 
and  the  collector  it  is  a  veritable  treasure-house. 
Here,  framed  and  unframed,  is  a  collection  of 

2  [l7] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

play-bills  and  programmes,  said  to  be  one  of  the 
finest  in  the  world.  Notable  among  them  is  the 
first  printed  programme  of  the  appearance  of 
David  Garrick,  c  c  as  a  young  gentleman. ' '  Here, 
too,  are  the  play-bills  representing  the  first  and 
last  appearance  of  Edward  Askew  Sothern, 
which  sum  up  his  marvellous  career.  In  the 
first  he  is  practically  a  nobody,  as  in  fact  he  was 
regarded  by  the  people  of  that  time.  In  the  last 
he  is  the  great  star  of  English  comedy,  a  man 
whose  fame  had  passed  beyond  the  English- 
speaking  peoples  and  was  known  to  every  stage 
in  Christendom.  The  last  appearance  was  under 
the  special  patronage  of  the  Prince  and  Princess 
of  Wales,  now  the  King  and  Queen  of  Great 
Britain.  The  two  together  show  the  meteoric 
career  of  one  whose  name  will  be  ever  dear  to 
those  who  witnessed  his  matchless  work  upon 
the  boards.  A  dado  of  straw  matting  throws  the 
wall  into  light  relief,  and  the  great  shelf  which 
runs  around  the  larger  part  of  the  room  is  laden 
down  with  curios  and  bric-a-brac  from  every  land. 
Here  there  seems  to  have  been  a  pleasant  rivalry 
between  master  and  mistress,  each  apparently 
having  taken  advantage  of  every  opportunity  to 
enrich  the  respective  collections.  Bronze  and 
marble,  wood  and  silver,  china  and  porcelain, 
[18] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

Wedgwood  and  majolica,  Dresden  and  Berlin 
ware,  creations  from  Paris  and  Switzerland,  art 
designs  from  Holland  and  Italy,  are  not  scat- 
tered, but  massed  in  delightful  profusion.  Up- 
on the  walls  are  sketches,  studies,  and  finished 
pictures  by  the  master.  Few  of  the  thousands 
who  have  watched  the  great  actor  know  that  in 
his  own  right  he  is  an  artist  of  high  ability.  If 
nature  had  denied  him  a  speaking  voice,  he 
would  undoubtedly  to-day  have  been  one  of  our 
most  successful  painters.  In  the  place  of  honor 
is  his  prize  drawing  of  the  Laocoon,  which 
for  strength  of  treatment  and  the  depiction  of 
terror  was  long  ago  recognized  as  one  of  the  best 
efforts  in  that  field  of  work.  Here,  too,  are 
sketches,  designs,  caricatures,  and  letters  relat- 
ing to  the  senior  Sothern.  Chief  among  these 
is  a  letter  by  Watts  Phillips,  in  which  the  happy 
humor  of  the  text  is  set  off  by  a  multitude  of 
dainty,  thumb-nail  sketches  on  the  margin.  The 
books  are  those  of  a  man  and  woman  of  general 
culture  rather  than  of  a  specialist,  as  might  be 
expected.  The  drama  is  nobly  represented,  but 
beyond  the  literature  of  the  stage  are  poetry, 
fiction,  history,  travel,  and  invaluable  books  of 
reference. 

The  boudoir  of  Mrs.  Sothern  is  a  symphony 
[19] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

in  red,  white,  and  gold.  It  was  blue  in  the 
beginning,  but,  according  to  its  owner,  the  color 
was  more  or  less  contagious,  and  for  that  reason 
was  changed  to  the  warmer  hue.  Quaintly- 
carved  furniture,  choice  laces,  silk  and  woollen 
upholstery,  easy  chairs,  and  a  thousand-and-one 
bits  of  color  and  beauty  make  her  sanctum  en- 
vied by  every  woman  who  crosses  the  threshold. 
This  is  the  home  where  the  Sotherns  spend  that 
part  of  their  lives  which  is  not  dedicated  to  the 
footlights.  The  atmosphere  is  full  of  life  and 
light,  and  sparkling  with  fun  and  good  nature. 
Each  has  had  an  interesting  career  upon  the 
boards,  and  each  possesses  a  good  memory,  with 
a  singularly  happy  power  of  expression. 

"My  greatest  dramatic  feat,"  said  Sothern, 
"or  perhaps  I  should  say  my  largest  or  most 
numerous  feat,  was  when  I  took  the  part  of  two 
armies  while  playing  in c  Richard  III.  *  I  was  what 
may  be  termed  a  small  utility  man  with  Barrett 
and  McCullough,  when  we  reached  a  town  where 
it  was  impossible  to  obtain  c  supers. '  Upon  me 
devolved  the  solemn  necessity  of  first  coming 
on  as  the  ferocious  army  of  the  crooked-backed 
king,  then  retiring,  changing  my  costume,  and 
reappearing  as  the  victorious  legions  of  the  noble 
Richmond.  I  cannot  say  that  either  of  my 
[20] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

great  masters  displayed  much  interest  in  my 
work.  Barrett  was  afraid  the  audience  might 
object,  and  McCullough  regarded  it  as  a  joke; 
but  I  was  appreciated,  to  my  regret,  by  the 
audience.  Their  comments  that  evening  upon 
the  flower  of  England's  chivalry  were  not  of  a 
nature  to  fill  my  youthful  soul  with  enthusiasm. ' ' 

Sothern  is  essentially  a  student.  Perhaps  no 
one  has  given  the  profession  more  critical  and 
careful  thought. 

"  To  me,"  he  says,  "the  progress  of  the 
stage  is  from  conventionalism  to  naturalism  and 
from  dramatic  crudity  to  an  artistic  intellectual- 
ity. The  critic  who  misses  the  robustious 
method  of  the  past  generation  does  not  appar- 
ently realize  that  he  is  paying  the  highest  kind 
of  a  compliment  when  he  says  that  a  star  in 
presenting  a  part  cannot  be  distinguished  from 
a  modern  gentleman.  This  very  intellectuality 
prompts  an  increased  use  of  the  poetic  and 
romantic  elements  of  life  and  thought  in  the 
drama.  Amid  the  many  changes  in  public 
favor  and  fashion,  it  may  be  noticed  that  the 
pendulum  always  swings  back  to  the  romantic 
and  ideal." 

"What  are  our  favorite  amusements  ?  "  said 
Mrs.  Sothern.  cc  I  fancy  our  chief  joy  is  to 
[21] 


Edward  H.  Sothern 

learn  Shakespeare  by  absorption.  Our  favorite 
relaxation  is  to  run  across  the  mill-pond  and 
become  citizens  of  the  good  old  town  of  Strat- 
ford-on-Avon.  Here  we  bask  and  vegetate. 
We  forget  all  the  rush  and  roar  of  New  York 
life  and  try  as  far  as  possible  to  simulate  the 
village  hinds,  who  are  almost  the  same  there  to- 
day as  they  were  when  Master  William  Shake- 
speare entertained  Ben  Jonson  and  the  rest  of 
that  immortal  crew.  When  you  enter  the  old- 
fashioned  inns  and  houses,  sit  upon  the  ancient 
furniture,  push  your  feet  among  the  rushes  on 
the  floor,  and  gape  wonderingly  at  the  thatch 
which  makes  your  ceiling,  you  realize  how 
greatly  daily  life  has  changed  since  the  Eliza- 
bethan era,  and  how  manners  and  speech  must 
unconsciously  change  with  them.  To  go  into 
Ann  Hatha  way's  cottage  makes  me  feel  like 
saying,  c  Prithee,  come  hither,  fair  wench,  and 
bring  me  a  goblet  of  posset.'  Over  there  it  is 
easy  to  understand  why  Shakespeare  and,  in 
fact,  most  of  the  poets  of  his  time  made  so 
many  allusions  to  flowers.  One  of  my  happiest 
memories  consists  of  pictures  of  the  rich  colors 
and  the  strong  scents  of  the  gardens  around 
Stratford." 

Among  Mr.   Sothern' s  many  famous    roles, 
[22] 


Virginia  Harned-Sothern 

those  which  have  won  the  highest  praise  are 
Jack  Hammerton,  in  "The  Highest  Bidder"; 
Claude  Melnotte,  in  "The  Lady  of  Lyons"; 
Francois  Villon,  in  "If  I  Were  King,"  and 
Hamlet.  Of  Mrs.  Sothern,  the  great  roles  have 
been  Drusilla,  in  "The  Dancing  Girl  "  ;  Trilby, 
in  du  Maimer's  drama;  the  titular  part  in 
"The  Adventures  of  Lady  Ursula,"  and 
Ophelia. 


[23] 


Richard  Mansfield — Beatrice 
Cameron  -Mansfield 

'Their  Lares  and  Penates 


> 


Si 


II 


Richard  Mansfield — Beatrice 
Cameron  -Mansfield 

Their  Lares  and  Penates 

HIGH  up  on  Riverside  Drive,  near  One 
Hundred  and  Fourth  Street,  is  the 
home  of  that  arch-master  of  dramatic 
art,  Richard  Mansfield.  The  building  is  a  hand- 
some, five  storied,  modern  stone  structure  which 
overlooks  the  Hudson  and  the  stately  Palisades 
on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  Not  far  away, 
to  the  north,  the  massive  mausoleum  of  General 
Grant  towers  high  in  air;  while  in  front  of  the 
residence,  that  narrow  belt  of  emerald,  River- 
side Park,  slopes  from  the  roadway  down  to 
the  water's  edge.  No  residential  district  more 
beautiful  can  be  found  upon  the  globe.  It  is 
a  place  for  the  artist,  the  poet,  and  the  dreamer. 
The  buildings  in  this  neighborhood  are  in  keep- 
ing with  their  environment.  They  are  rich, 
imposing,  but  unostentatious. 

The  home  of  the  actor  is  no  exception  to  the 
rule.      The  entrance   to  the   house  is  through 
a  roomy  doorway  which  gives  the  impression  of 
[27] 


Richard  Mansfield 

pageants  and  impressive  social  functions.  The 
wall  to  the  left  of  the  door  is  broken  by  a  win- 
dow which  the  designer  has  covered  with  Vene- 
tian grillage,  whose  flowing  lines  suggest  lace 
work  forged  by  Titans  out  of  steel.  Crossing 
the  threshold  is  like  entering  the  great  galleries 
of  the  Vatican.  The  house,  in  fact,  is  in  small 
what  the  Pontifical  palace  is  in  large.  It  is  the 
home  of  an  artist,  where  all  the  work  has  been 
done  by  artists,  and  where  there  is  no  atmos- 
phere save  that  of  art.  There  are  homes  richly 
furnished  which  impress  one  with  a  sense  of 
wealth;  there  are  others  which  are  eloquent  of 
intellectual  activity;  there  are  some  which  ex- 
hale law  and  statesmanship,  and  others  which 
appeal  purely  to  the  religious  elements  of  being. 
But  in  this  home  you  perceive  that  it  is  a  place 
where  art  is  worshipped  for  art's  sake.  Every- 
thing appeals  to  high  aesthetic  taste,  and  nothing 
jars  the  inner  sense  or  mars  the  harmony  of  the 
whole. 

The  entrance  room  is  a  symphony  in  yellow. 
The  walls  are  faced  with  silk  plush  almost  old 
gold  in  hue,  and  the  upholstery  of  the  chairs  is 
of  the  same  material.  So  carefully  is  the  color- 
ature  carried  out,  that  the  woodwork  is  of  golden- 
tinted  oak.  The  chandeliers  and  ornaments  are 
[28] 


Beatrice  Cameron -Mansfield 

likewise  of  xanthic  hue.  The  chromatic  har- 
mony has  been  so  elaborated  that  there  is  no 
conflict  or  excessive  contrast  in  tints.  It  is 
not  difficult,  in  the  decorative  art,  to  confine  the 
colors  of  the  various  parts  of  an  establishment 
to  any  one  prismatic  hue,  but  it  is  difficult  to 
select  those  whose  tinting  is  of  the  same  gen- 
eral actinic  quality.  It  is  possible  to  ruin  a 
harmony  in  green  by  juxtaposing  a  diaphanous 
uranium  with  an  opaque  bottle  green.  The 
same  thing  might  be  done,  and  too  often  is 
done,  in  xanthic  harmony.  But  in  the  present 
case  the  artist  to  whom  the  matter  was  en- 
trusted has  taken  for  his  keynote  a  rather  bright 
light  and  made  every  hue  conform  to  it  with 
perfect  grace.  Beside  the  pleasure  afforded  to 
the  eye,  this  actinic  harmony  enables  the  owner 
to  give  effects  not  possible  with  strong  chromatic 
contrasts  or  with  excessive  primary  coloring. 
It  makes  the  halls  seem  far  longer  than  they 
really  are,  and  when  to  its  influence  is  joined 
the  effect  of  mirrors,  a  suite  of  rooms  becomes 
a  seemingly  interminable  series  of  great  apart- 
ments, each  looking  into  another. 

The  stairway  from  the  ground  to  the  main 
floor  has  broad  and  easy  treads.    Upon  the  wall 
is  a  quaint  collection  of  old   English  sporting 
[29] 


Richard  Mansfield 

prints  before  which  the  visitor  is  tempted  to 
pause  and  enjoy  their  bright  hues  and  virile 
drawing.  Farther  on  up-stairs  the  sporting 
prints  change  into  a  collection  of  Hogarth's 
drawings,  as  full  of  humor  to-day  as  when  the 
British  artist  first  satirized  the  follies  and  foibles 
of  the  eighteenth  century. 

On  the  main  floor  are  four  notable  apart- 
ments. The  anteroom  is  a  delightful  study  in 
the  architecture  and  decoration  of  the  period  of 
Henri  II.  The  mantelpiece  is  a  noble  old 
Flemish  oak  which,  before  coming  to  America, 
witnessed  the  lavish  hospitality  and  gallant  con- 
versation of  a  French  chateau.  Time  has  but 
increased  its  beauty.  The  carving  is  as  fault- 
less as  it  was  a  hundred  years  ago,  and  even  the 
smallest  details  of  the  chisel  are  as  clear  as  if 
made  yesterday ;  but  the  years  have  brought  out 
the  grain  and  given  it  a  tone  so  rich  and  rest- 
ful as  to  make  it  the  central  figure  of  the  place. 
The  mantel  has  a  close  rival  in  an  ancient  chest, 
exquisitely  carved  and  inlaid,  such  as  graced  the 
mansions  of  nobility  in  the  Middle  Ages.  The 
grace  and  symmetry  of  the  ornamentation  are 
French;  but  the  superb  workmanship,  which 
seems  to  defy  time,  is  apparently  Flemish.  On 
the  walls  of  the  anteroom  are  many  paintings 
[30] 


Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield 

of  more  than  ordinary  interest.  One  is  a  por- 
trait of  David  Garrick  by  George  Romney; 
another,  a  portrait  of  the  same  great  actor  by 
a  pupil  of  Gainsborough.  Two  other  canvases 
are  a  Francois  Boucher,  and  a  dainty  pastel  by 
Rosalba  Camera. 

The  tapestry-room  occupies  the  front  of  the 
mansion  and  is  finished  in  Italian  Renaissance. 
Upon  the  walls  are  four  ancient  tapestries,  upon 
which  are  depicted  heroic  tableaux.  The  colors 
have  faded  into  soft,  warm  grays  and  browns; 
the  glitter  and  richness  have  passed  away,  and 
the  pictures  which  were  once  bright  and  daz- 
zling are  now  dim  and  shadowy.  The  bleach- 
ing hand  of  time  has  not  injured,  but  increased, 
the  beauty  of  the  needlework.  The  poetic 
nuns  or  sisters,  who  in  their  cloisters  wrought 
these  wondrous  textures  of  the  needle,  worked 
with  a  sweet  sincerity.  To  them  the  heroes 
whom  they  depicted  upon  the  fabric  were  real 
and  alive.  Criticism  had  not  changed  the 
heroes  into  shadowy  myths.  But  with  the 
years  the  dead  idols  of  the  past  have  become 
spectral  figures,  and  the  faint  hues  and  fading 
lines  of  the  tapestry  are  singularly  truthful  in 
representing  the  characters  as  they  are.  The 
fireplace  is  made  of  verde  antico,  and  the  rich 
[3i] 


Richard  Mansfield 

mantel  above  it  is  in  old  oak,  modelled  after  the 
types  familiar  to  us  through  the  palaces  of  the 
Doges  and  the  nobles  of  Genoa  and  Milan.  It 
is  set  with  a  painting  of  which  the  frame  is  in- 
laid with  verde  antico,  so  as  to  be  in  sympathy 
with  the  fireplace  below.  The  mantel  was 
brought  from  Italy,  where  it  once  adorned 
a  palazzo.  The  furniture  consists  of  antique 
Italian  pieces,  and  the  portieres  are  of  Genoa 
velvet.  Noticeable  among  the  works  of  art 
are  a  carved  cabinet,  a  Cinque-cento  bust  in 
colors,  and  a  terra-cotta  bust  of  rare  beauty. 
The  lighting  of  the  room  is  from  an  ancient 
sanctuary  lamp  in  repousse  silver,  which  was 
taken  from  a  sacristia  in  northern  Italy  during 
the  wars  of  Napoleon. 

The  period  of  Louis  XV.  marks  the  music- 
room,  of  which  both  walls  and  furniture  are 
covered  with  antique  red  damask.  A  collection 
of  ceramics,  including  Sevres  ware,  porcelain, 
and  old  English  pottery,  is  one  of  the  best 
in  the  country.  On  the  wall  are  life-sized 
paintings  of  Mr.  Mansfield  as  Shylock  and 
Cyrano  de  Bergerac.  Not  far  from  the  latter 
is  a  fine  portrait  of  Madame  Rudersdorf,  exe- 
cuted when  she  was  twenty  years  of  age.  The 
gem  of  the   room    is    an    original    Bonington. 

[32] 


Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield 

But  few  works  of  this  great  artist  are  extant, 
two  being  in  the  Louvre.  Brilliant  art  crea- 
tions are  the  piano  covers,  which  are  made  of 
rose  brocatel  inlaid  with  silver.  The  illusion 
of  the  past  is  sustained  by  a  secret  door  in  the 
place,  which,  when  opened,  reveals  a  china 
closet  stored  with  treasures.  Among  these  are 
sets  of  Poloor,  Derby,  Charles  X.,  Coalport, 
Worcester,  Davenport,  Sevres,  Royal  Derby, 
Lowestoft,  and  Spode. 

In  the  dining-room  the  artist  has  created  an 
old  English  interior.  The  wainscoting  is  in 
brown  oak,  and  the  walls  hung  in  dark  green 
damask.  The  ceiling  is  gridironed  with  oak 
rafters,  whose  intervals  are  decorated  with  Tif- 
fany green  and  gold  enamel.  On  a  massive 
sideboard  is  a  wonderful  display  of  silver,  so 
crowded  as  to  make  the  surface  seem  solid 
metal.  Upon  the  wall  are  old  masters,  includ- 
ing a  Sir  Thomas  Lawrence,  a  Sir  Peter  Lely, 
and  two  Sir  Godfrey  Knellers.  In  front  of  the 
serving  door  is  a  mighty  screen  made  of  dark 
wood  and  embossed  Spanish  leather. 

On  the  third  floor  is  Mrs.  Mansfield's  boudoir, 

which  is  beyond  all  doubt  the  finest  specimen 

of  art-workmanship  in  the  dwelling-place.      In 

the  main  it  is  a  reproduction  of  the  boudoir  of 

3  [33] 


Richard  Mansfield 

Queen  Marie  Antoinette  at  Fontainebleau.  The 
ceiling  is  in  refined  original  carved  designs,  the 
hangings  and  portieres  of  silk  brocatel,  woven 
in  Louis  Seize  designs.  The  furniture,  man- 
tel, over-mantel,  clock,  and  candelabra  are  of 
the  same  period.  Most  fascinating  of  all  are 
collections  of  Louis  Seize  porcelains  and  of 
bijoux  enclosed  under  glass.  On  the  walls  are 
five  panels  painted  on  white  silk,  representing 
Poetry,  Dancing,  Music,  Drama,  and  Painting. 
The  fourth  floor  is  reserved  to  Mr.  Mans- 
field. Here  he  has  his  study,  which  is  a  richly- 
appointed  and  comfortable  library.  The  book- 
cases line  the  walls  to  the  height  of  five  feet, 
and  above  them  are  a  continuous  line  of  cher- 
ished pictures.  The  furniture  is  mahogany, 
and  the  color  scheme  green.  This  is  the  en- 
joyable environment  wherein  most  of  Mr.  Mans- 
field's life  off  the  stage  is  passed.  He  is  hap- 
pily married,  his  wife  being  Beatrice  Cameron, 
a  brilliant  star  of  the  American  stage.  Of 
equal  importance  in  his  household  economy  is 
George  Gibbs  Mansfield,  now  in  his  third  year, 
who  is  said  to  rule  his  parents  with  a  rod  of 
iron.  He  inherits  from  both  father  and  mother 
a  love  of  art,  but  from  some  ancestor  a  scien- 
tific enthusiasm  and  precocious  curiosity  which 
[34] 


Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield 

at  times  are  fatal  to  aesthetics.  His  experi- 
ments upon  tapestry,  Sevres,  and  other  works 
of  art  are  not  known  to  have  increased  the  sum 
total  of  human  knowledge,  but  have  aroused 
the  enthusiasm  of  his  sire  in  ways  which  only 
parents  can  imagine. 

If  character  is  a  function  of  heredity  and  ex- 
perience, Mr.  Mansfield  should  possess  extraor- 
dinary talent  or  even  high  genius.  Both  his 
parents  were  musicians  of  the  highest  profes- 
sional position,  and  in  his  youth  he  travelled 
from  European  capital  to  capital,  learning  the 
language,  customs,  and  etiquette  of  each  civil- 
ized country.  Endowed  with  a  powerful  mem- 
ory and  a  studious  habit,  he  mastered  many 
tongues,  and  can  to-day  act  and  think  in  Eng- 
lish, French,  German,  and  Italian.  Of  the 
first  three  his  mastery  is  so  complete  that  it  is 
impossible  to  say  which  language  is  the  one  of 
his  real  self.  Upon  this  question  even  he  is 
at  sea.  The  old  test  of  what  language  a  man 
dreams  in  does  not  apply  to  him,  for  his  dreams 
are  in  each  or  all  of  the  trio,  as  the  case  may 
be.  His  career  upon  the  stage  has  been  from 
the  lowest  to  the  highest  round,  and  has  con- 
tained so  many  triumphs  as  to  make  it  notable. 
He  is  just  a  little  over  forty  years  of  age. 
[35] 


Richard  Mansfield 

His  first  histrionic  performance  was  as  a 
boy  at  an  English  school,  where  he  played  Shy- 
lock.  He  indulged  in  journalism,  and  when 
about  twenty  began  his  professional  career.  In 
1882  he  made  his  debut  in  New  York.  In 
January,  1883,  he  won  a  triumph  in  u  A  Par- 
isian Romance,"  where,  out  of  the  part  of 
Baron  Chevrial,  which  had  been  dismissed  by 
older  actors  as  worthless,  he  made  a  character 
so  intense  and  powerful  as  to  startle  the  blase 
theatre-goers  of  New  York.  In  one  night  he 
leaped  from  obscurity  to  fame,  and  in  a  week 
was  probably  the  most  talked-about  actor  in 
the  Empire  City.  His  next  success  was  in 
"  French  Flats"  and  "  La  Vie  Parisienne." 
Then  came  li  Prince  Karl,"  in  1886;  the 
same  season  saw  two  clever  parts,  in  u  Dr. 
Jekyll  and  Mr.  Hyde  "  and  M  Monsieur." 

In  1889  he  made  his  bow  to  a  London  audi- 
ence. Here  he  presented  his  American  suc- 
cesses, which  pleased  his  British  audiences,  but 
did  not  arouse  any  great  enthusiasm.  He 
changed  his  repertoire,  and  produced  u  Richard 
III."  in  a  manner  that  carried  the  English  cap- 
ital by  storm.  Since  that  time  he  has  given 
Beau  Brummel,  Don  Juan,  Nero,  Shylock,  Cyrano 
de  Bergerac,  and  Monsieur  Beaucaire. 
[36] 


Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield 

These  are  but  a  few  of  the  many  roles  he  has 
presented  in  the  past  twenty  years,  and  are  a 
striking  commentary  upon  his  versatility  and 
power.  This  versatility  on  the  stage  has  its 
counterpart  in  his  character.  Besides  being  an 
actor  and  singer,  he  is  a  painter,  poet,  author, 
composer,  and  critic.  It  is  to  these  varied  tal- 
ents that  he  owes  much  of  his  success  in  the 
costuming,  musical  illustration,  and  stage-set- 
ting of  the  dramas  which  he  has  presented. 
With  characteristic  modesty  he  seldom  alludes 
to  these  gifts. 

On  one  occasion  a  lady  asked  him : 

u  I  hear,  Mr.  Mansfield,  you  are  a  painter, 
and  that  for  one  year  you  lived  on  your  paint- 
ings ?  " 

u  You  have  been  misinformed,  madam," 
was  the  quick  reply.  u  I  lived  in  spite  of 
them." 

A  friend  one  day  said: 

i  i  I  understand  that  you  have  just  written  a 
new  and  popular  song." 

u  Please  don't  tell  anybody,"  exclaimed 
Mansfield,  ( c  until  I  have  doubled  my  life  in- 
surance." 

He  is  a  pleasant  man  to  meet.  On  Sunday 
evenings  he  holds  open  house  to  his  many 
[37] 


Richard  Mansfield 

friends,  and  his  home  is  crowded  with  the 
brightest  wits  and  clearest  intellects  in  the 
metropolis. 

In  conversation  he  displays  a  rare  combina- 
tion of  ripe  learning,  delicate  fancy,  and  illu- 
minating humor. 

u  My  profession,"  he  said,  u  is  more  than  a 
pastime,  although,  after  all,  the  highest  type  of 
a  pastime  is  that  which  benefits  the  individual 
who  employs  it.  The  true  function  of  the 
stage  is  partly  educational  and  partly  artistic. 
No  education  is  complete  which  neglects  the 
study  of  beauty,  and  no  art  is  finished  which 
omits  the  intellectual  elements.  The  so-called 
c  raising '  of  the  stage  depends  chiefly  upon 
these  elements,  and  its  growth  has  been  almost 
entirely  along  these  lines.  The  thoughtful 
actor  and  the  shrewd  manager  take  advantage 
of  every  invention  and  discovery  to  increase  the 
attractiveness  and  realistic  beauty  of  a  dramatic 
representation,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  they 
endeavor  to  elevate  histrionic  standards  just  as 
high  as  public  taste  will  permit.  It  is  a  mis- 
take to  suppose  that  the  power  of  the  people 
behind  the  footlights  is  larger  than  the  ability 
of  those  in  front  of  the  footlights  to  be  in  touch 
with  them.  I  have  absolute  confidence  in  art 
[38] 


Beatrice  Cameron-Mansfield 

and  in  the  public.  Fashions  come  and  go,  but 
beyond  these  there  is  a  great  intelligence  which 
always  appreciates  the  best  work,  and  in  the 
course  of  time  rewards  it  proportionately.  A 
high  devotion  to  the  profession  is  bound  event- 
ually to  be  appreciated  and  honored.  Careless 
genius  may  prosper  for  a  day,  but  it  is  steady 
and  untiring  talent  which  moulds  the  stage  and 
evolves  the  dramatic  ideals  of  the  race. ' ' 


[39] 


Marie  Bates 

Her   Home   in    East    Thirty-First   Street, 
New  York 


Ill 

Marie   Bates 

Her  Home  in  East  Thirty-First  Street, 
New  York 

THE  backwoods  moralist  who,  from  the 
recesses  of  his  imagination,  paints 
weird  pictures  of  the  intense  excite- 
ment of  an  actor's  life,  ought  to  visit  the  me- 
tropolis and  call  upon  one  of  the  leading  mem- 
bers of  the  profession.  He  would  turn  down 
from  Fifth  Avenue  at  Thirty-first  Street,  and, 
walking  along  that  thoroughfare,  would  find 
himself  in  one  of  the  quietest  residential  neigh- 
borhoods in  the  world;  staid,  old-fashioned 
houses;  calm,  dignified  people;  a  well-kept  and 
orderly  street.  On  every  hand  the  signs  of 
neatness  and  regard  for  the  rights  of  others 
might  cause  him  to  believe  that  he  was  in  a 
community  inhabited  by  college  professors,  phy- 
sicians, and  divines.  There  are  many  such  dis- 
tricts in  New  York,  and  they  suggest  the  sleepy 
cities  of  the  Old  World  rather  than  the  sleep- 
less metropolis  of  which  they  are  parts. 

A  typical  house  in  this  street  is  the  residence 

[43] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

of  Marie  Bates,  who  for  thirty  years  has  been 
prominent  upon  the  American  stage.  The 
home  represents  both  her  tastes  and  her  growth. 
It  is  a  roomy  and  attractive  dwelling-place, 
built  along  the  lines  that  were  popular  two  gen- 
erations ago.  Everything  is  simple,  clear,  and 
truthful.  There  is  no  attempt  at  garish  dis- 
play and  no  exhibition  of  ostentatious  luxury. 
A  single  glance  shows  that  the  occupant  is  a 
person  of  a  warm,  intelligent,  thoughtful,  affec- 
tionate, and  active  nature,  who  makes  the  best 
of  life,  both  for  herself  and  for  others.  An  in- 
describable something  indicates  that  the  presiding 
genius  of  the  home  is  a  woman  and  not  a  man. 

Many  are  the  activities  which  are  carried  on 
by  the  head  of  the  household.  Here  is  a  sew- 
ing-room which  would  delight  any  disciple  of 
modern  needlecraft.  In  this  atelier  Miss  Bates 
spends  some  time  every  day.  She  is  an  adept 
at  embroidery,  crocheting,  drawn-work,  and 
other  decorative  designs  on  filament  and  tissue. 
The  working  chairs  are  so  arranged  that  the 
light  falls  over  her  shoulder,  and  open-mesh 
lace  curtains  and  light  tints  in  the  color  scheme 
of  the  room  insure  ease  to  the  worker. 

"  It  may  be  a  sign  that  I  am  old-fashioned," 
said  Miss  Bates,  u  but  I  must  plead  guilty  to 
[44] 


Marie  Bates 

a  constitutional  love  for  sewing  and  doing  things 
with  the  needle.  It  has  been  so  as  far  as  I  can 
recall.  I  can,  of  course,  use  the  sewing-ma- 
chine and  all  the  ingenious  attachments  which 
our  fellow-countrymen  have  invented,  but  that 
seems  to  me  like  toil,  with  no  element  of  enjoy- 
ment. On  the  other  hand,  a  needle,  thimble, 
and  thread  afford  delight,  without  any  seeming 
expenditure  of  labor.  Fine  needlework  is  not 
at  all  unusual  upon  the  stage.  It  may  not  be 
as  common  to-day  as  it  was  thirty  years  ago, 
when  I  frequently  saw  actresses  knitting  or 
crocheting  while  behind  the  scenes  waiting  for 
the  cue.  I  do  not  recall  any  company  but  in 
which  two  or  more  of  the  members  utilized 
spare  moments  in  making  objects  of  beauty  with 
the  needle.  At  the  present  time  I  think  there 
is  less  of  what  I  may  call  necessary  sewing,  but 
just  as  much,  if  not  more,  fancy  and  ornamen- 
tal work.  In  one  respect  there  has  been  a  great 
change.  In  my  youth  the  knitting  of  yarn  and 
worsted  was  universal.  Every  good  wife  and 
mother  supplied  both  husband  and  children  with 
home-made  winter  hosiery.  It  was  very  soft 
and  warm,  and  I  believe  it  wore  like  iron;  but 
the  labor  involved  was  very  large.  Of  late 
years,  I  do  not  remember  any  actress  engaged 
[45] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

upon  this  particular  task.  It  would  be  folly  to 
do  it,  anyhow,  because  modern  machinery  does 
even  better  work  at  a  lower  price  than  what  the 
old-fashioned  yarn  now  costs  the  knitter." 

In  the  sewing-room  are  several  articles  of 
furniture,  such  as  sewing-chairs  and  work-tables, 
belonging  to  the  early  part  of  the  last  century. 
Their  clear-cut  lines  and  strong  surfaces  speak 
well  for  the  joiners  and  cabinet-makers  of  long 
ago.  Miss  Bates  has  quite  a  hobby  for  old  time 
furniture,  nearly  all  of  the  equipment  of  her 
residence  representing  years  of  hard  work  locat- 
ing and  securing  the  various  pieces.  Many  of 
them  are  heirlooms  which  have  come  down  at 
least  three  generations.  She  is  of  New  Eng- 
land origin,  and  some  of  her  household  treasures 
heard  the  guns  of  Bunker  Hill,  and  a  few  bits 
of  china  may  have  touched  the  lips  of  Governor 
Winthrop.  The  New  England  ancestry  ap- 
pears in  the  expression  of  the  rooms.  There 
is  little  or  no  use  of  foreign  ideas  and  products. 
The  equipment  is  essentially  American,  and  in 
the  selection  of  articles  an  attempt  has  been 
made  to  illustrate  the  historical  development  of 
the  nation  from  the  first  settlements  to  the  pres- 
ent time.  It  may  be  that  there  is  a  predomi- 
nance of  colonial  and  revolutionary  elements, 
[46] 


Marie  Bates 

but,  if  so,  these  express  a  pardonable  pride  on 
the  part  of  the  owner.  The  chief  exception 
to  this  rule  is  in  regard  to  pictures  and  books. 
Miss  Bates  denies  that  these  form  an  exception. 
"  Art  and  literature,"  she  said,  u  have  no 
nationality.  John  Milton  belonged  just  as  much 
to  New  England  as  to  Old  England;  in  fact, 
I  do  not  know  but  what,  in  his  Puritanism,  he 
was  not  more  of  a  Massachusetts  settler  than 
an  English  gentleman.  When  I  go  abroad  I 
like  to  obtain  pictures  and  books  and  other 
things  that  will  serve  as  souvenirs  of  happy  days 
of  travel,  and  also  as  reminders  in  some  way  of 
the  masters  of  both  dramatic  and  general  litera- 
ture. Following  this  feeling,  when  I  have  been 
in  England  I  have  picked  up  souvenirs  of 
Shakespeare,  Ben  Jonson,  Raleigh  and  Love- 
lace, Byron  and  Scott,  Dickens  and  Thackeray, 
Dr.  Johnson  and  Coleridge.  If  I  had  had  the 
time  I  should  have  bought  views  and  other  re- 
membrances of  many  a  poet,  novelist,  and  play- 
wright. This,  however,  I  hope  to  do  in  the 
years  to  come.  Outside  of  the  mere  pleasure, 
there  is  a  certain  professional  interest  in  study- 
ing the  homes  of  the  dead  authors.  These 
often  throw  light  upon  scenes  and  characters  in 
plays  that  might  otherwise  be  a  stumbling-block 
[47] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

to  the  performer.  No  one  can  go  to  Scotland 
without  getting  a  better  notion  of  Macbeth  than 
is  possible  to  those  who  live  in  a  flat  country; 
while  a  visit  to  the  Tower,  Westminster  Abbey, 
and  other  parts  of  Old  London  enable  one  to 
form  quite  a  definite  conception  of  the  ladies 
and  gentlemen  of  whom  Sheridan  and  Gold- 
smith wrote  so  quaintly." 

These  memorials  form  a  very  pleasant  ele- 
ment in  the  furnishing  of  the  home.  They  are 
in  nearly  every  room,  and  suggest  an  agreeable 
or  thrilling  historical  fact.  Oddest  among  them 
are  the  house  decorations  of  the  olden  time.  In 
frames  of  wood  or  porcelain  are  wax  flowers, 
some  made  in  the  conventional  way  that  was 
employed  in  the  convent  schools,  and  others 
showing  the  bold  lines  and  skilfully  wrought 
surfaces  where  an  unknown  genius  broke  away 
from  the  regulation  patterns  of  the  time.  Un- 
der glass  are  hair  flowers  which  were  so  popular 
in  the  last  century.  In  those  days  the  happy 
lover  secured  not  a  little  tuft  of  hair,  nor  even 
a  single  lock  from  his  Dulcinea  del  Toboso, 
but  an  entire  strand.  This  he  carried  to  a  hair- 
worker,  who  transformed  it  into  an  ornate  true- 
lover's  knot,  a  rose,  a  bunch  of  forget-me-nots, 
or  any  other  blossom  appropriate  to  the  occa- 

[48] 


Marie  Bates 

sion,  according  to  the  solemn  pages  of  u  Ye 
Booke  of  Ye  Language  of  Flowers."  The 
passing  of  the  custom,  it  may  be,  has  been 
brought  about  for  the  reason  that  the  modern 
belle  has  not  as  much  hair  to  spare  as  had  her 
grandmother,  or  that  the  latter  was  more  will- 
ing to  sacrifice  her  crowning  glory  in  order  to 
evidence  the  depth  of  her  affection.  Of  the 
same  school,  but  different  and  dismal  in  char- 
acter, were  the  funeral  pictures  woven  in  hair. 
This  is  a  custom  which  is  happily  extinct  or 
nearly  so.  Nearly  all  the  hair  of  those  who 
passed  away  was  shorn,  and  woven  or  sewed 
into  a  picture  of  a  tomb  with  a  willow  or 
cypress  tree  hanging  over  it.  Interesting,  too, 
are  the  hostess's  pieces  of  old-time  embroidery. 
The  workmanship  is  excellent,  but  lacks  the 
variety  of  the  modern  day,  where  every  school  of 
needlecraft  teaches  a  course  which  combines  the 
best  features  of  all  the  needlework  of  Europe. 

M  How  did  I  get  into  the  relic  and  general 
antiquity  business  ?  "  said  the  mistress  of  the 
house.  u  I  really  cannot  tell  you,  unless  I  in- 
herited it.  It  began  in  my  childhood,  on  ac- 
count of  my  love  for  my  grandmother,  who  was 
herself  a  devotee  of  antiquity.  From  her  have 
come  many  of  my  treasures;  from  other  rela- 
4  [49] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

tives  and  friends,  a  second  portion;  while  the 
remainder  are  the  result  of  my  own  inquiries 
and  shopping  both  here  and  abroad.  Sometimes 
I  fancy  that  actors  have  a  deeper  love  for  this 
antiquarian  line  of  thought  than  the  members 
of  any  other  calling.  Nearly  all  my  friends 
in  the  profession  have  collections  like  myself, 
while  a  few  have  enough  to  stock  small  mu- 
seums. I  presume  that  we  appreciate  the  sym- 
bolism which  runs  through  daily  existence. 
On  the  stage,  life  is  more  than  make  believe,  it 
is  symbolical ;  and  the  habits  of  thought  started 
behind  the  footlights  are  very  apt  to  remain  in 
one's  own  boudoir  and  drawing-room." 

The  glory  of  Miss  Bates's  home  is  her  bird- 
room.  This  is  a  combination  of  sitting-room 
and  aviary.  The  chief  tenants  are  the  birds, 
which  are  about  one-half  nightingales  and  the 
other  half  canaries.  Next  to  them  in  impor- 
tance is  Miss  Bates,  and  third  are  all  other 
human  beings.  The  birds  seem  to  understand 
their  position,  and  behave  with  an  arrogance 
that  is  simply  delicious.  The  cages  are  large 
and  handsome,  but  the  cage-doors  are  always 
open.  Near  the  windows  are  potted  shrubs  and 
flowers,  and  among  these  several  which  are 
popular  with  the  bird-world.  There  is  fresh 
[5o] 


Marie  Bates 

water  where  the  little  creatures  can  drink  when 
they  so  desire,  and  almost  always  some  little 
delicacy  which  appeals  to  a  songster's  palate. 
Kind  treatment  has  worked  wonders  with  her 
feathered  friends.  They  seem  to  regard  their 
owner  as  an  elder  sister.  They  come  at  her 
call,  and  very  often  without  her  call.  When 
they  are  sick,  they  want  her  to  nurse  them; 
when  they  are  in  good  spirits,  they  want  her  to 
play.  When  they  are  ill-natured,  they  want 
her  as  an  object  of  their  wrath  and  scolding; 
and  when  affectionate,  they  endeavor  to  express 
their  love  by  the  oddest  little  sounds  and  gest- 
ures imaginable. 

Miss  Bates's  career  began  when  a  child,  at 
Ford's  Theatre,  Baltimore,  in  the  sixties.  Early 
in  the  seventies  she  became  a  member  of  the 
famous  F.  B.  Conway  Stock  Company  of 
Brooklyn,  New  York.  Here  she  gained  her 
laurels  and  was  recognized  as  a  standard  artist. 
Since  that  time  she  has  belonged  to  the  best 
companies  of  the  country,  and  has  played  in 
every  leading  city  of  the  land.  Her  last  four 
prominent  parts  have  been  Mrs.  Murphy,  in  the 
"  Chimmie  Fadden "  play;  Aunt  Rosa^  in 
uZaza";  Abigail  Prime,  in  "The  County 
Fair,"  and  Mrs.  Eagan,  in  "  The  Auctioneer." 
[5i] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

At  Her  Own  Hearth 


IV 

Elsie  de  Wolfe 
At  Her  Own  Hearth 

THE  Union  Square  district  is  one  of  the 
busiest  in  New  York.  Through  it 
runs  Broadway,  the  aorta  of  the  me- 
tropolis, while  Fourteenth  Street  may  be  regarded 
as  its  femoral  artery.  Vast  magazines,  huge 
factories,  and  crowded  office  buildings  are  elo- 
quent of  the  city's  commercial  prosperity.  Near 
the  square  is  a  little,  old-fashioned  street  which 
seems  to  have  been  avoided  by  the  tides  of  travel 
and  traffic.  It  is  a  pleasant  thoroughfare — 
Irving  Place — and  its  very  name  brings  up  sug- 
gestions of  the  literature  and  habits  of  Knicker- 
bocker days.  It  was  named  from  Washington 
Irving,  who  at  one  time  resided  on  the  corner 
of  Seventeenth  Street. 

There  is  a  theatrical  flavor  to  the  atmosphere, 
the  Academy  of  Music  being  at  the  head  of  the 
street,  and  on  the  other  side  the  Irving  Place 
Theatre,  where  the  masterpieces  of  the  German 
muse  have  been  presented  during  the  past  dec- 
ade. No  neighborhood  is  more  appropriate  for 
[55] 


Eminent  Actors  in  "Their  Homes 

the  home  of  a  famous  actress.  In  the  very 
house  where  Diedrich  Knickerbocker  once  lived 
now  reside  the  star  Elsie  de  Wolfe  and  her 
friend  Miss  Elizabeth  Marbury,  the  distin- 
guished manager  and  writer.  The  high  build- 
ings in  that  part  of  the  city  make  their  home 
seem  small  by  contrast,  yet  it  is  a  roomy  and 
happy  specimen  of  old-time  architecture.  Three 
stories  in  height,  strongly  built  and  soundly 
timbered,  thick-walled  and  well-joined,  it  is  as 
new  and  substantial  as  the  last  creation  of  the 
builder  in  the  same  neighborhood.  The  ex- 
terior is  very  plain  and  unassuming,  as  were 
nearly  all  the  buildings  put  up  in  New  York 
when  it  was  a  struggling  part,  and  not  the  rival 
of  London  for  the  commercial  supremacy  of 
the  globe.  Its  old-time  aspect  gives  it  a  cer- 
tain home-like  look,  suggesting  pleasant  people, 
gracious  manners,  open  hospitality,  and  the  wis- 
dom and  fine  breeding  of  the  dead  generations. 
Within  there  is  no  echo  of  the  outside  world, 
unless  it  be  of  the  two  big  playhouses  down  the 
street.  The  impression  produced  by  the  in- 
terior is  essentially  foreign  and  French.  It  re- 
minds one  in  a  vague  way  of  the  Palace  Le 
Petit  Trianon,  not  that  there  is  any  imitation 
of  the  features  or  decoration  of  this  famous 
[56] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

establishment,  but  that  the  beauty,  art,  and  en- 
semble of  the  house  are  in  exactly  the  same 
key.  If  the  fair  owner  of  the  palace  had  set- 
tled in  New  York,  her  home  would  have  been 
precisely  like  that  of  the  Misses  de  Wolfe  and 
Marbury. 

The  entrance  hall  is  rich  with  tapestry  and 
subdued  mural  decorations.  It  opens  into  a 
noble  salon,  which  in  turn  communicates  with 
the  dining-room.  The  former  apartment  is 
treated  so  as  to  give  the  feeling  of  a  court. 
The  furniture  is  simple,  elegant,  and  not 
crowded.  Upon  the  floor  are  magnificent  East- 
ern rugs,  and  half-way  down  the  room  exquisite 
marble  pedestals,  supporting  jardinieres  of  grow- 
ing ferns  and  palms,  impart  the  same  sense  of 
satisfaction  as  does  a  well-ordered  conservatory 
or  a  finely-kept  garden.  On  the  wall  over  the 
mantel  is  a  superb,  life-sized  painting  of  a  beau- 
tiful woman  by  Nattier.  Elsewhere  are  other 
works  of  art,  paintings,  and  gems  of  the  metal- 
smith,  ceramist,  sculptor,  and  designer.  Doubt- 
less the  most  noticeable  feature  of  the  draw- 
ing-room is  the  ample  bay  window.  This  is 
furnished — in  fact,  almost  filled — with  flowers, 
ferns,  vines,  and  mosses,  and  in  the  centre  a 
small  fountain  makes  music  with  falling  water, 
[57] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

which  runs  into  a  fish  pool,  where  two  and 
four  tailed  goldfishes  swim  indolently  or  rest 
motionless,  as  if  lost  in  studying  the  problem 
of  eternity.  On  either  side  of  the  recess  formed 
by  the  bay  window  are  interesting  collections. 
On  one  side  is  a  series  of  miniatures  of  rare 
beauty  and  historic  value.  They  are  painted 
on  wood,  ivory,  and  porcelain,  and  represent 
many  characters  notable  in  fact  or  fiction.  On 
the  other  side  is  an  escritoire  carved,  inlaid,  and 
decorated  in  the  highest  style  of  the  art  of  Louis 
Seize.  Over  the  escritoire  is  a  veritable  mu- 
seum of  figurines.  It  may  be  doubted  if  its 
equal  can  be  found  in  Gotham.  They  range 
in  height  from  half  an  inch  to  four  and  five 
inches,  and  are  modelled  or  carved  in  clay, 
plaster,  cloth,  marble,  alabaster,  wood,  ivory, 
metal,  and  even  precious  jade.  They  come 
from  every  country  and  represent  every  age  in 
the  history  of  art.  Some  are  so  old  as  to  sug- 
gest fossils,  and  others  are  bright  and  new 
enough  to  have  come  from  the  designer's  studio 
the  day  before.  The  major  part  seems  to  have 
come  from  France,  Italy,  and  Switzerland,  these 
countries  leading  the  rest  of  Europe  in  this 
branch  of  glyptic  design. 

u  I  have  always  had  a  great  love   for  these 
[58] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

little  figurines,"  said  Miss  de  Wolfe;  "  they 
appeal  to  the  poetic  as  well  as  to  the  aesthetic 
sense.  The  sculptor  who  produces  a  great 
marble  or  bronze  wins  the  praise  of  the  world ; 
but  the  artist  who  turns  out  these  little  figures 
does  so  from  the  mere  love  of  his  work,  and 
without  any  hope  of  fame,  and  oftentimes  of 
equivalent  reward.  We  keep  on  record  the 
names  of  every  sculptor,  painter,  and  architect ; 
but  who  ever  heard  the  name  of  a  figurine- 
maker  ?  Yet  many  of  these  creations  possess 
an  intrinsic  beauty  that  may  be  compared  with 
that  of  larger  and  more  ambitious  pieces.  Busts 
and  statues  are  obtained  in  every  big  city.  In 
the  towns  and  villages  they  are  unknown  to 
trade.  The  figurines  are  to  be  picked  up  in 
many  a  mountain  village  and  seashore  hamlet. 
They  represent  the  work  of  unknown  makers, 
who  have  been  prevented,  it  may  be  by  fate  or 
by  misfortune,  from  ever  extending  their  talents 
and  playing  parts  in  the  world  of  art.  Some 
of  my  figures  will  bear  the  scrutiny  of  the  mag- 
nifying glass,  and  tell  in  no  uncertain  tone  that 
their  making  was  a  labor  of  love." 

The  period  of  Marie  Antoinette  is  recalled 
vividly  by  two  admirable  busts  of  that  unfor- 
tunate   queen,  as  well    as   by  a   spinet    and   a 
[59] 


Eminent  Actors  in  "Their  Homes 

lyre  which  possibly  were  touched  by  her  fair 
fingers. 

The  dining-room  is  a  model  of  simplicity. 
The  chromatic  effect  is  gold  and  white,  and  the 
decorations  are  restful  in  tone.  Nothing  in  the 
room  tends  to  distract  the  attention  of  the  guest 
from  the  dinner  and  the  diners.  The  illumina- 
tion is  by  means  of  old-fashioned  candelabra, 
and  two  Roman  Corinthian  columns  with  brown 
shafts  and  white  capitals  and  pedestals  form 
a  happy  framework  to  the  window. 

On  the  second  floor  the  hall  is  an  enjoyable 
study.  At  one  side  is  a  piece  of  ancient  tapes- 
try, and  near  the  end  a  great  mirror  doubles  the 
apparent  length  of  the  corridor.  Not  far  from 
the  head  of  the  stairs  is  a  collection  altogether 
unique  for  a  busy,  intellectual  woman.  This 
is  a  lot  of  queer  little  dolls  representing  nearly 
every  known  European  and  American  type. 

u  It  is  all  very  well,"  said  the  hostess,  M  to 
laugh  at  this  hobby,  but  that  is  because  you  do 
not  appreciate  a  doll  at  its  full  value.  There 
are  dolls  and  dolls.  Properly  understood,  a  doll 
may  be  a  lesson  in  ethnology,  history,  and  the 
development  of  costumes.  At  least  that's  what 
my  dolls  are.  Just  as  artists  make  collections 
of  photographs  and  even  models  of  famous  build- 

[60] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

ings,  so  I  have  gathered  a  little  army  of  dolls 
to  represent  racial  types,  costumes,  uniforms, 
and  the  history  of  hair-dressing,  boots  and  shoes, 
and  feminine  decoration.  It  saves  lots  of  time. 
It  is  not  necessary  to  go  to  a  library  and  get 
down  a  clumsy  book  with  pictures  of  the  cloth- 
ing worn  in  this  court  and  that,  in  one  century 
or  another.  Often  the  pictures  are  wrong,  and 
always  it  is  impossible  to  make  your  garment 
from  the  printed  portrait.  But  when  you  have 
a  doll  dressed  up  as  was  a  lady-in-waiting  at  the 
Court  of  Louis  the  Magnificent,  or  the  merry 
duchess  in  the  day  of  King  Charles,  you  know 
just  what  to  do  to  dress  your  part  in  a  play  call- 
ing for  a  reproduction  of  either  period.  My 
dolls  are  really  a  library  and  an  art  gallery  com- 
bined." 

On  this  floor  are  the  boudoirs  of  the  two 
owners,  each  a  complete  artistic  whole  in  itself. 
Miss  Marbury's  room  may  be  called  a  pastel  in 
blue  and  white.  The  tone  is  that  of  religious 
art.  A  superb  Crucifixion  ornaments  the  wall, 
and  in  one  corner  is  a  beautifully  carved  prie- 
dieu.  There  are  canopies  over  the  bed,  closets, 
and  windows.  An  Eastern  carpet  and  French 
furniture,  along  with  pictures  and  bric-a-brac, 
make  the  place  exceedingly  attractive. 
[61] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Miss  de  Wolfe's  boudoir  is  a  creation  in 
rose.  Everything  about  the  apartment  is  warm, 
radiant,  and  poetic.  The  bedstead  is  a  marvel- 
lous piece  of  carving,  more  like  the  divans  of 
China  than  those  of  our  own  civilization.  It 
was  obtained  from  a  French  chateau,  and  looks 
massive  enough  to  be  turned  upon  its  side  and 
employed  as  a  barricade  in  the  event  of  a  riot 
or  revolution.  On  either  side  of  the  mantel 
are  bookcases  filled  with  choice  literature,  and 
on  the  wall  are  oil  paintings  whose  subjects 
are  in  light  and  pleasant  key. 

On  the  third  floor  is  the  library,  which  might 
be  called  the  museum.  The  bookcases  cover 
nearly  all  the  wall,  and  the  volumes  are  in  most 
instances  specially  bound.  A  notable  feature  is 
a  series  of  works  upon  the  Courts  of  France  and 
England,  in  both  French  and  English.  Upon 
this  field  of  literature  Miss  de  Wolfe  has  spent 
many  years,  and  has  brought  together  nearly 
every  memoir,  history,  and  volume  of  letters 
published  upon  the  subject. 

M  In  making  my  library,"  she  said,  u  I  have 
allowed  my  literary  taste  to  be  influenced  by 
associations  of  travel  and  professional  require- 
ments. Probably  two-thirds  of  the  parts  which 
I  have  studied  and  the  plays  in  which  I  have 
[62] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

appeared  have  been  connected  with  French  and 
English  history.  To  obtain  a  clear  conception, 
not  so  much  of  the  characters,  costumes,  or 
physical  peculiarities,  but  rather  of  the  social 
relations  and  mental  and  moral  tone  of  each 
epoch,  I  have  tried  to  bring  together  the  mate- 
rials which  would  supply  the  necessary  facts. 
It  is  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  there  is  not  the 
same  development  in  social  relations  as  in  all 
the  other  elements  of  civilization.  Each  period 
has  its  own  code  of  manners,  morals,  and  social 
intercourse.  In  the  time  of  Elizabeth  there 
were  a  frankness  of  speech  and  a  sincerity  of 
action  entirely  inadmissible  in  a  modern  salon. 
So  even  in  the  golden  age  of  Louis  the  Mag- 
nificent there  was  a  certain  freedom  of  conver- 
sation and  a  use  of  humor  which  would  not  be 
allowed  to-day  by  ladies  and  gentlemen.  All 
of  these  things  are  interconnected,  so  that  dif- 
ferences in  etiquette  would  produce  minute  but 
perceptible  differences  in  carriage,  pose,  and 
action.  These  points  would  not,  perhaps,  be 
noticed  by  a  general  audience,  but  they  do  ap- 
peal to  all  students  and  thoughtful  people,  and 
it  is  from  these  that  the  valuation  of  any  actor 
is,  in  the  long  run,  established." 

Oddest   of  all   among   her   treasures   in   the 
[63] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

library  is  Miss  de  Wolfe's  cabinet  of  foot-wear, 
in  which  there  is  a  multitude  of  boots  and  shoes. 
Besides  the  articles  themselves  are  many  photo- 
graphs of  others  which  she  has  been  unable  to 
obtain.  Nearly  every  community  has  evolved 
a  special  covering  for  the  feet,  and  oftentimes 
has  gone  to  such  lengths  that  the  mere  sight  of 
the  shoe  tells  the  land  or  period  to  which  it 
belongs.  In  Japan  a  woman  wears  a  wooden 
sole,  which  is  held  to  the  foot  by  a  flat-headed 
nail,  fitting  in  between  the  big  and  second  toe. 
In  China  a  thick  wooden  sole  faced  with  kid 
and  shod  with  pigskin  is  characteristic  of  that 
land.  The  sandals  of  Greece  and  Rome  are 
peculiar  to  those  classic  countries.  The  long 
shoe,  whose  toe  turned  up  and  was  prolonged 
into  a  whipcord  fastened  to  the  belt,  marked  a 
period  of  luxury  in  the  European  Middle  Ages. 
The  high-heeled  bottine  of  France,  the  sabot 
of  the  French  peasantry,  the  muslin  half-sandal 
of  the  West  Indies,  the  pointed  Morocco  slip- 
per of  the  Moslems,  the  flat-soled  shoe  with  the 
high  heel-piece  of  the  Orient,  the  dancing-san- 
dal of  India,  the  jack-boot  of  Oliver  Cromwell 
are  each  and  all  capital  illustrations  of  both 
races   and  history. 

Miss  de  Wolfe's  dramatic  career  began  as  an 
[64] 


Elsie  de  Wolfe 

amateur,  making  her  debut  in  1885  at  the  Cri- 
terion Theatre  in  London.  She  displayed  so 
much  natural  talent  that  in  one  season  she  be- 
came the  first  of  the  amateur  players  of  the 
metropolis.  She  entered  the  profession  in  1891, 
after  having  studied  carefully  in  both  New  York 
and  France.  Since  then  her  chief  roles  have 
been  Fabienne  Lecoulteur,  in  ( c  Thermidor  ' ' ; 
Rose  Reade,  in  u  Sister  Mary";  Lady  Kate 
Fennel,  in  <(  The  Bauble  Shop";  Lady  Charley 
Wishanger,  in  ' (  The  Masqueraders  ' ' ;  Mrs. 
Wanklyn,  in  cl  John  A'Dreams";  Mrs.  Dud- 
ley Chumleigh,  in  "  Marriage " ;  Helene,  in 
"  Catherine,"  and  Mrs.  Croyden,  in  "  The 
Way    of   the    World." 


[65] 


Minnie  Maddern    Fiske 
At  Home 


Mrs,  Fiske  at  Home. 


V 

Minnie   Maddern   Fiske 
At  Home 

A  WOMAN  with  Titian-red  hair  and  a 
silken  complexion;  with  eyes  which 
I*  change  color  as  she  talks ;  with  grace- 
ful, well-knit,  and  well-rounded  figure,  indica- 
tive of  great  vitality  and  endurance,  sits  in  a 
rocking-chair  in  an  artistic  drawing-room.  As 
she  speaks  it  is  evident  that  her  body  is  but  the 
mouthpiece  of  her  mind.  Each  fibre  is  alive 
and  quivering.  The  muscles  of  the  face  move 
as  if  to  accompany  every  emotion  and  mood  of 
her  being.  Her  white  hands  are  here,  there, 
and  everywhere.  Her  arms  and  waist  are  never 
at  rest.  Even  her  well  chausseed  feet  appear 
at  times  to  accentuate  or  punctuate  her  conver- 
sation. She  carries  you  along  by  the  strength 
and  rush  of  her  emotional  and  aesthetic  nature. 
You  realize  that  you  are  talking  to  the  artist 
who  is  in  touch  not  only  with  her  profession, 
but  also  with  current  events  and  with  everything 
of  interest  that  pertains  to  the  world.  Her  very 
intensity  attracts  and  fascinates.  The  dullest 
[69] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

fact,  when  viewed  through  her  eyes,  contains 
some  theretofore  unseen  truth.  The  most  in- 
significant personality,  viewed  by  her  imagina- 
tion, assumes  strange  beauty  and  impressiveness. 
This  is  Mrs.  Minnie  Maddern  Fiske,  who  for 
the  past  fifteen  years  has  been  a  forceful  figure 
in  the  annals  of  the  American  stage. 

The  room  in  which  she  is  sitting  reflects  in 
a  vague  way  her  individuality.  The  furniture 
is  rich,  handsome,  and  comfortable.  The  colors 
of  the  apartment  are  gold,  brown,  and  cream- 
white,  which  in  the  dull  red  light  of  the  vast 
fireplace  suggest  her  flowing  hair  and  white 
skin.  A  grand  piano,  guitar,  and  well-thumbed 
pieces  of  music  indicate  her  love  for  the  art 
of  Beethoven,  and  any  number  of  finely-bound 
books,  works  of  the  great  authors,  show  her  ap- 
preciation of  the  masters  of  literature.  This 
apartment  on  Park  Avenue,  New  York  City,  is 
merely  one  of  her  homes,  of  which  she  has 
three.  She  refers  to  it  as  her  u  stopping-place  " 
when  in  town,  while  the  places  she  regards  as 
homes  are  far  away  from  the  turmoil  of  the 
metropolis. 

u  City  life,"  she  says,  u  is  a  disagreeable 
necessity,  of  which  I  wish  to  make  as  little  as 
possible.  A  person's  home  is  where  her  heart 
[7o] 


Minnie  Maddern  Fiske 

is,    and   mine   is   with    the    trees   and   running 
streams." 

Her  nature  is  too  active  and  aesthetic  to  be 
satisfied  with  a  single  domicile.  She  craves 
both  the  sight  of  the  salt  sea  and  the  fragrant 
atmosphere  of  the  pine  woods.  The  craving  is 
gratified  by  one  summer  home  upon  the  Fiske 
estate  at  Mamaroneck-on-the-Sound,  and  an- 
other at  Lake  Pleasant,  near  Northville,  in  the 
Adirondacks.  The  former  is  Glen  Cottage,  an 
old-fashioned  villa  in  Westchester  County.  The 
name  is  singularly  appropriate.  The  structure 
is  a  cottage  in  fact,  as  well  as  in  title.  It  is 
not  one  of  the  cottages  which  are  marble  pal- 
aces, like  those  at  Newport,  nor  vast  barns, 
like  those  at  Long  Branch.  A  rambling  shape, 
broad  verandas,  and  capacious  halls  and  rooms 
present  all  the  charm  which  belongs  to  the 
English  home  from  which  its  American  coun- 
terpart is  borrowed.  A  brawling  brook  runs 
through  the  grounds  not  far  from  the  house, 
and  a  large  part  of  the  estate,  as  well  as  the 
cottage,  is  embowered  with  maples,  elms,  and 
beeches.  The  Glen  bears  all  the  marks  of  the 
action  of  fierce  watery  cataclysms  in  long-gone 
years.  The  jagged  rocks  and  bowlders,  water- 
worn  pebbles  and  gravel-banks,  sharply  cut  hills, 
[7i] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

and  irregular  contours  tell  an  eloquent  tale  of 
the  time  when  Westchester  County  was  ground 
beneath  the  iron  hoofs  of  a  vast  glacier. 

Mrs.  Fiske  is  passionately  fond  of  trees  and 
flowers,  and,  while  resting  here,  devotes  a  great 
deal  of  her  leisure  time  to  arboriculture  and  hor- 
ticulture. She  disclaims  the  dignity  of  being  a 
scientific  florist,  and  laughingly  pleads  guilty  to 
a  love  of  the  old-fashioned  flowers  and  decora- 
tive vegetable  growths  which  are  so  pleasing  an 
adjunct  to  the  landscape,  whether  American  or 
English.  She  lives  as  much  as  possible  in  the 
open,  where  she  studies,  reads,  and  thinks  out 
the  parts  which  she  is  to  present  each  coming 
season. 

u  To  one  who  loves  nature,"  she  says, 
u  there  is  inspiration  when  studying  among  the 
trees,  and  mental  stimulation,  when  fatigued,  be- 
neath shadowy  boughs.  I  find  that  my  thoughts 
flow  more  rapidly,  and  my  power  to  form  artis- 
tic conceptions  greatly  increase,  when  I  am  sur- 
rounded by  old  friends  in  the  form  of  trees,  and 
new  ones  in  the  shape  of  flowers.' ' 

In  this  little  Eden  she  spends  a  part  of  her 
vacation  in  company  with  her  husband,  Harri- 
son Grey  Fiske,  the  author  and  editor.  When 
her  yearning  for  salt  air  is  thoroughly  gratified, 
[72] 


Minnie  Maddern  Fiske 

she  changes  her  quarters  from  Glen  Cottage  to 
her  forest  home  in  the  Adirondacks.  Here,  as 
far  as  possible,  she  leads  the  life  of  an  oread. 
Her  home  is  a  rough-hewn  timber  structure,  on 
whose  outside  the  bark  still  remains.  Around 
her  are  the  great  forests  and  the  glorious  soli- 
tudes of  the  north  woods,  and  from  the  win- 
dows can  be  seen  the  noble  outline  of  Blue 
Mountain.  The  primeval  groves  extend  in 
every  direction.  The  trees  are  chiefly  balsams — 
pines,  firs,  hemlocks,  cedars,  and  spruces — and 
the  rich  perfume  of  their  leaves  and  branches 
saturates  the  atmosphere.  Not  far  from  the 
house  is  a  lake,  where  in  fair  weather  the  actress 
can  be  seen  every  day  pulling  a  strong  oar. 
There  is  nothing  of  the  hunter  or  fisher  in  her 
organization.  She  dislikes  the  idea  of  destroy- 
ing life,  and,  so  far  as  she  is  concerned,  the  trout 
can  come  to  her  boat,  or  the  partridge  perch 
upon  her  chair,  without  fear  of  molestation. 
Here  in  the  very  heart  of  the  wilderness  she 
has  a  flower  garden.  A  cosey  veranda  affords 
shelter  from  the  rain  in  wet  weather,  and  from 
the  sun  on  warm  afternoons.  Within  the  lodge 
everything  is  comfort  and  rest.  The  furnish- 
ing is  in  keeping  with  the  place,  but  is  never- 
theless full  of  the  conveniences  of  civilized  life. 

[73] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Here,  again,  works  of  art,  curios  and  oddities, 
books  and  magazines,  betray  the  taste  of  the 
mistress,  and  show  that  while  we  may  change 
our  skies  we  do  not  change  ourselves.  In  clear 
weather  she  is  in  the  woods  from  dawn  until 
eve.  Her  mercurial  temperament  fits  her  to 
be  a  companion  of  the  squirrels  and  other  tire- 
less little  folk  of  the  forest.  The  solitude  has 
no  terrors  for  her,  and  trees  and  mosses,  brooks 
and  birds'  nests,  birds  and  four-footed  creatures 
are  as  familiar  to  her  as  are  the  books  and  pic- 
tures in  Glen  Cottage  or  in  her  apartments  in 
the  distant  city. 

u  If  I  had  my  way,"  she  says,  u  this  would 
be  my  permanent  abiding  place.  There  is  a 
strange  flavor  to  the  air  which  to  me  means 
health,  strength,  and  happiness.  It  tastes  dif- 
ferent from  the  air  of  cities  and  towns.  It  is 
fuller  of  ozone  and  of  the  fragrance  with  which 
nature  seems  to  tempt  the  weary  to  come  away 
from  brick  walls  and  stone  pavements." 

It  is  difficult  to  reconcile  the  intellectual  and 
artistic  tone  of  her  character  with  her  deep  love 
of  the  forest  and  mountains.  This  seeming  in- 
congruity has  marked  enough  characters  to  make 
it  familiar  to  the  student  of  literature.  It  domi- 
nated Thoreau,  Audubon,  Cope,  and  other  fa- 
[74] 


Minnie  Maddern  Fiske 

mous  intellects;  but  it  is  a  rare  combination  in 
men,  and  still  rarer  in  women. 

No  matter  where  her  home,  Mrs.  Fiske  is 
both  social  and  hospitable.  When  in  the  city 
her  parlors  are  thronged  with  friends;  when  in 
the  country  she  is  nearly  always  the  recipient  of 
visits  from  those  who  know  and  admire  her.  In 
this  respect  she  fulfils  the  traditions  of  her  pro- 
fession. From  the  earliest  times  actors  have  been 
famous  for  their  social  kindliness  and  charm. 
Though  a  young  woman  in  years,  Mrs.  Fiske 
has  had  a  long  and  eventful  career  upon  the 
stage;  in  fact,  the  stage  may  be  said  to  be,  and 
to  have  been,  her  real  home.  She  made  her  first 
appearance  at  the  age  of  three  years,  when  she 
took  part  in  a  Shakespearian  drama.  She  played 
speaking  parts  in  her  girlhood,  and  so  marked 
was  her  talent  that  at  sixteen  she  was  a  star  in 
her  own  right.  Her  ability  and  versatility  were 
recognized  from  the  very  first,  so  that  her  ser- 
vices have  always  been  in  demand.  Probably 
no  actress  of  her  age  has  played  with  so  many 
of  the  great  histrions  of  this  country  and  Eng- 
land. It  may  be  questioned  if  she  has  not  sup- 
ported nearly  every  star  of  distinction  who  has 
appeared  upon  the  American  boards  in  the  two 
decades  just  past. 

[75] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

Her  versatility  is  notable.  She  is  a  com- 
petent comedian,  and  a  powerful  tragedian.  If 
Shakespearian  drama  were  in  vogue,  she  would 
probably  have  no  equal  on  the  boards  to-day  in 
the  leading  female  roles.  The  list  of  her  suc- 
cesses throws  a  good  light  upon  her  histrionic 
talent.  These  have  been  Nora,  in  Ibsen's 
u  Doll's  House  "  ;  Becky  Sharp,  in  Thackeray's 
u  Vanity  Fair  "  ;  Tess,  in  Thomas  Hardy's  cre- 
ation ;  Marie  Deloche,  in  ( c  The  Queen  of 
Liars  "  ;  li  La  Femme  du  Claude,"  and  Magda. 
These  express  the  gamut  of  the  emotions,  with  a 
tendency,  it  may  be,  toward  morbidity  in  Tess, 
cynicism  in  Becky  Sharp,  and  pessimism  in  Nora. 

li  One  of  my  favorite  parts,"  she  says,  "  is 
that  of  Becky.  I  feel  a  sort  of  proprietary  in- 
terest in  the  lady.  I  studied  it  critically  in 
Thackeray's  immortal  novel  long  before  it  was 
dramatized.  The  first  time  I  read  the  book  I 
was  impressed  by  its  dramatic  possibilities,  and 
unconsciously  I  sketched  out  to  myself  what 
I  might  call  an  unwritten  drama.  When  it 
was  dramatized  I  was  so  familiar  with  all  the 
characters  and  the  plot  that  it  seemed  as  if 
I  had  been  playing  it  all  my  life.  Yet  even  in 
the  presentation  of  Becky  I  had  an  experience 
the  first  night  that  I  have  had  with  almost  every 
[76] 


Minnie  Maddern  Fiske 

play  upon  its  initial  performance.  I  do  not 
know  quite  how  to  describe  it.  It  is  not  stage 
fright,  but  a  dull,  mental  lethargy,  which  seems 
to  be  the  accompaniment  of  an  over-intense 
mental  excitement.  My  words  and  my  action  go 
smoothly,  but  there  is  a  strangely  benumbed  sen- 
sation in  my  head,  so  that  I  hardly  know  which 
is  the  first  and  which  the  fifth  act.  I  was  dis- 
cussing the  matter  not  long  ago  with  Sir  Henry 
Irving,  Richard  Mansfield,  and  Ellen  Terry, 
and  to  my  surprise  each  told  me  of  having  had 
similar  experiences,  only  in  their  cases  it  was 
not  the  first  night,  but  any  night  except  the 
first;  that  the  feeling  came  upon  them  like  a 
spell,  lasted  an  indefinite  time,  and  then  went 
away.  With  me  it  is  connected  with  the  first 
performance.  The  fear  of  the  feeling  comes 
upon  me  the  moment  I  begin  studying  the  part 
at  home.  It  increases  gradually  but  steadily, 
and  culminates  with  the  performance.  Almost 
every  time  I  vow  that  hereafter  I  will  make  the 
first  performance  a  social  and  friendly  affair,  and 
for  my  audience  have  only  old  friends  and  neigh- 
bors. Although  I  have  this  dread  of  the  first 
performance  of  a  new  play,  it  is  purely  subject- 
ive, and  does  not  seem  to  externalize  itself. 
So  far  as  I  know,  it  has  never  shown  itself  in 
[77] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

speech  or  action,  and  has,  mayhap,  never  been 
noticed  by  the  public.  These  first  nights  have 
one  singular  advantage;  they  make  my  home 
a  hundred-fold  more  delightful  to  me  than  ever 
before.  When  I  get  back  to  my  apartments 
after  the  play  is  over,  I  feel  like  a  tired  and 
frightened  bird  that  has  at  last  in  safety  alighted 
in  its  own  nest." 


[78] 


Annie    O'Neill 
At  Home  and  Abroad 


Annie  O * Neill  and  her  Son, 


VI 

Annie    0 "  Neil  I 

At  Home  and  Abroad 

THE  American  stage  has  drawn  its  stars 
from  every  land,  and  to  the  student 
of  out-of-the-way  facts  is  interesting 
from  its  singular  cosmopolitanism.  If  Mans- 
field represents  the  genius  of  Germany;  Mod- 
jeska,  Poland;  May  Robson,  Australia;  Janau- 
schek,  Austria;  Annie  Yeamans,  the  Isle  of 
Man;  and  Annie  Ward  Tiffany,  Ireland;  Scot- 
land can  point  with  satisfaction  to  its  fair 
daughter  Annie  O'Neill  as  its  representative 
in  the  American  theatre. 

A  bright-eyed,  fine-featured,  willowy  and 
graceful  creature,  she  might  pose  as  an  ideal 
daughter  of  the  Highlands.  Travel,  education, 
and  culture  have  failed  to  free  her  from  the  per- 
fume of  the  heather.  While  her  clear  enuncia- 
tion is  not  any  more  indicative  of  Scotch  than 
of  Irish  origin — these  two  lands  having  appar- 
ently a  greater  regard  for  the  beauty  of  vowels 
and  consonants  than  either  England  or  the 
United  States — every  now  and  then  a  slight 
6  [81] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Caledonian  accent,  or  some  such  word  as  ( c  bon- 
nie,"  "wee,"  "bracken,"  and  "  brockle " 
betrays  the  Land  o'  Groats. 

She  went  upon  the  stage  when  a  mere  girl, 
and  made  her  debut  in  New  York  with  Richard 
Mansfield's  company  in  the  drama  of  u  Prince 
Karl."  Here,  although  her  part  was  a  small 
one,  she  did  so  well  as  to  elicit  universal  praise. 
She  made  an  exceedingly  attractive  figure  behind 
the  footlights,  while  her  elocution  and  stage 
business  were  up  to  the  standards  which  have 
marked  the  Mansfield  productions  from  the 
start.  In  one  season  she  became  a  metropoli- 
tan favorite,  and  from  that  time  on  has  held 
a  unique  position  upon  the  stage.  It  is  not  as 
a  tragedian,  nor  as  a  society  actress,  nor  exactly 
as  a  comedian  that  she  is  to  be  regarded. 
Her  forte  lies  in  the  presentation  of  char- 
acters marked  by  youth,  beauty,  innocence, 
sweetness,  and  refinement.  In  the  portrayal 
of  such  parts  she  certainly  has  few,  if  any, 
superiors. 

After  a  brief  professional  life  she  married 
Henry  C.  Miner,  the  millionaire  manager,  and 
retired  to  private  life.  The  union  was  very 
happy,  but  short-lived.  During  her  married 
career  she  presided  over  the  Miner  household, 
[82] 


Annie  O'Neill 

which  was  famous  for  its  hospitality.  Their 
city  home  was  on  Riverside  Drive,  overlooking 
the  Hudson,  and  their  country  seat  at  Red 
Bank,  New  Jersey.  They  had  what  Miss 
O'Neill  calls  two  annexes,  a  place  in  south- 
ern California,  on  the  shore  of  the  Pacific,  and 
a  mansion  in  southern  Ireland.  During  this 
period,  which  lasted  five  years,  the  four  homes 
were  Meccas  to  hundreds  of  bright  people. 
Both  husband  and  wife  were  popular,  and  en- 
joyed the  friendship  of  the  classes  which  are 
connected  with  the  footlights.  Managers,  ac- 
tors, playwrights,  poets,  singers,  composers, 
musicians,  and  painters  constituted  the  bulk  of 
their  friends  and  acquaintances.  These  are  the 
elements  that  make  up  the  true  Bohemia  of 
modern  life.  They  live  largely,  if  not  chiefly, 
in  the  imagination  and  intellect,  and  find  their 
joys  in  the  higher  pleasures  of  the  brain.  The 
death  of  Mr.  Miner  cut  short  this  happy  epoch, 
and  so  changed  the  current  of  her  life  that  from 
old  habits,  as  well,  perhaps,  as  from  her  tem- 
perament, Mrs.  Miner  went  back  to  the  stage 
in  the  same  city  where  she  had  scored  her  suc- 
cesses before  going  to  the  altar  as  a  bride.  She 
made  her  return  in  the  play  of  ' (  Sweet  and 
Twenty,"  in  which  she  took  the  role  of  Joan, 
[83] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

and  where  she  received  a  welcome  which  must 
have  filled  her  with  delight. 

Her  new  home-life  is  naturally  smaller  and 
more  self-centred  than  her  old.  Her  family 
consists  of  herself  and  a  little  boy,  Jack,  or 
M  Judge  Jack,"  as  he  calls  himself.  Her  pres- 
ent city  home  is  on  West  Seventy-first  Street, 
while  in  the  summer  she  still  uses  the  Miner 
House  at  Red  Bank,  on  the  Shrewsbury  River. 
The  two  places  differ  considerably  in  the  im- 
pression they  make  upon  the  visitor.  The  town 
residence  marks  the  woman  and  the  mother; 
the  country  seat,  the  woman,  wife,  and  late 
husband.  The  former  is  a  two-story  and  base- 
ment dwelling,  small,  but  exquisitely  appointed. 
From  entrance  to  roof  it  displays  fine  taste, 
broad  knowledge  of  the  art  world,  and  a  deep 
love  for  cultivated  ease.  Books  in  handsome 
bindings ;  fine  steel  engravings  in  choice  frames ; 
excellent  oil  paintings;  dainty  bits  of  marble, 
bronze,  and  majolica;  specimens  of  beautiful 
ceramics,  curios,  and  oddities  from  a  score  of 
lands  evidence  a  catholic  taste  and  much  time 
spent  sight-seeing.  The  presence  of  several 
pianos  speaks  for  itself.  One  of  these,  an  odd, 
electric  music  mechanism,  called  by  the  baby 
his  "electric"  or  u  trolley,"  is  a  feature  of 
[84] 


Annie  O'Neill 

the  establishment.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is, 
or  was  originally,  an  admirable  instrument;  but 
the  simple  mechanism  has  been  mastered  by  the 
enfant  terrible,  who,  with  childish  enthusiasm, 
insists  upon  serenading  his  mother  and  every 
stranger  within  the  gates.  What  with  the  in- 
vention on  the  one  side  and  the  small  boy  on 
the  other,  probably  no  home  more  resembles  a 
continuous  concert-room. 

Miss  O'Neill  is  a  fine  instrumentalist,  and 
upon  her  own  Weber,  not  Judge  Jack's  u  elec- 
tric," plays  regularly  every  day,  and  entertains 
her  friends  whenever  she  holds  a  social  func- 
tion. In  no  one  are  the  maternal  and  domestic 
virtues  more  predominant.  Outside  of  her  pro- 
fessional work  Miss  O'Neill's  life  is  merged  in 
her  little  son  and  her  home.  Her  chief  occu- 
pations are  entertaining  and  teaching  the  boy, 
and  beautifying  and  improving  her  house,  which, 
to  her,  is  in  itself  an  education  to  the  youthful 
mind. 

M  I  think,"  said  she,  u  that  a  boy's  educa- 
tion should  begin  at  birth,  and  that  as  far  as 
possible  he  should  be  accustomed  to  the  best 
and  highest  thoughts  and  achievements  of  the 
race.  In  playing  music,  great  compositions 
should  be  selected,  employing,  of  course,  those 
[85] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

sufficiently  melodic  to  please  the  undeveloped 
ear.  I  notice  with  my  baby  that  he  already 
dislikes  common  music  or  any  air  that  is  poorly 
rendered.  Besides  these  features,  there  should 
be  great  care  bestowed  upon  the  child's  physi- 
cal nature.  He  should  use  all  exercises  which 
tend  to  develop  grace,  agility,  and  bodily  con- 
trol. Gymnastics  whose  aim  is  the  mere  de- 
velopment of  muscle  and  the  creation  of  simple 
brute  strength  do  little  good;  oftentimes  they 
do  harm  by  transferring  all  the  child's  energy 
to  his  body  to  the  neglect  of  his  mind  and  soul. 
Those  should  be  preferred  which  follow  out  the 
natural  growth  of  a  human  being,  helping  na- 
ture to  develop  the  perfect  man,  and  increasing 
the  physical  vitality,  which  then  may  be  utilized 
in  mental  and  moral  channels." 

Miss  O'Neill's  system  is  based  upon  these 
ideas.  Every  clear  day  when  she  is  in  New 
York  she  takes  Jack  out  driving,  walking,  or 
sleighing.  With  him  she  visits  the  Park,  mu- 
seums, art  galleries,  and  other  places  of  interest, 
while  at  home  she  oversees  the  little  curriculum 
which  has  been  mapped  out  for  his  mind  and 
body.  In  Jack's  sanctum,  where  she  is  obliged 
to  sit  and  listen  to  the  young  man,  there  is  a 
juvenile  carpenter  shop,  a  diminutive  art  studio, 
[86] 


Annie  O'Neill 

a  machinist's  bench,  and  a  collection  of  toys 
which  would  please  the  heart  of  Santa  Claus. 
Once,  while  the  writer  was  visiting  Miss 
O'Neill,  the  young  hopeful  improved  the  op- 
portunity by  painting  upon  his  mother's  slipper 
a  gorgeous  chromatic  figure  which  he  explained 
to  be  a  bird  of  paradise ! 

The  arrangement  of  the  home  is  very  simple 
and  sensible,  involving  a  minimum  of  trouble 
in  going  up  and  down  stairs.  On  the  first  floor 
are  the  drawing-room  and  dining-room,  and 
back  of  the  dining-room  a  pleasant  den  intended 
for  lounging  after  a  meal.  On  the  second  floor 
the  library  and  art-room  occupy  the  front  of  the 
house,  and  back  of  these  are  the  boudoir,  the 
nursery,  and  other  living  rooms.  The  color 
scheme  is  varied  from  apartment  to  apartment. 
The  drawing-room  is  in  pink,  Louis  Quinze 
style;  the  dining-room,  Moorish;  the  library 
a  dark  Russian  red,  and  the  boudoir  in  del  and 
white. 

The  mistress  of  the  home  has  a  fondness  for 
man's  noblest  companion,  the  horse,  and  keeps 
a  small  stable  of  unusual  excellence.  She  is  a 
skilful  rider  and  driver,  and  has  a  singular  power 
of  winning  the  affections  of  her  equine  prop- 
erty. All  of  her  horses  know  her,  and  regard 
[87] 


Eminent  Actors  in  "Their  Homes 

her  as  an  intimate  friend.  Two  of  them,  her 
favorites,  a  pair  of  bays,  have  been  so  carefully 
trained  and  treated,  that  they  might  at  a  pinch 
be  used  for  performing  purposes.  It  is  behind 
them  that  she  and  Jack  take  their  daily  drives 
in  the  city,  and  go  wandering  about  the  country 
while  living  at  their  home  in  Red  Bank. 

"  I  like  social  pleasure,"  said  Miss  O'Neill, 
il  and  formerly  indulged  my  desires  to  the  ut- 
most; but  it  is  impossible  for  a  woman  in  the 
active  practice  of  the  dramatic  profession  to 
give  more  than  a  small  amount  of  her  time  to 
receiving  and  entertaining.  Against  my  will 
I  have,  therefore,  been  compelled  to  deprive 
myself  of  many  pleasures  which  I  formerly 
enjoyed.  I  devote  my  life  to  my  calling  and 
to  my  little  son,  and  only  now  and  then  enter- 
tain my  many  friends. 

((  My  favorite  reading  is  Scotch  poetry.  This, 
it  seems  to  me,  has  been  overlooked  somewhat 
in  late  years;  so  much  so,  that  I  run  across 
people  who  think  that  the  Caledonian  muse 
is  restricted  to  Robert  Burns.  To  them  such 
names  as  Hogg,  Lockhart,  Ayton,  Aytoum, 
Drummond,  Ramsay,  Kirkconnell,  Joanna  Bail- 
lie,  and  Beattie  are  unknown.  Even  Macaulay 
and  Scott  are  remembered  by  their  prose,  while 
[88] 


Annie  O'Neill 

their  poetry  seems  to  have  been  half  forgotten. 
There  is  a  certain  quaintness  and  directness 
in  the  Scotch  poets  which  appeal  to  me  very 
greatly.  Most  fascinating  of  all  are  the  old 
ballads  and  songs  which  have  been  preserved 
by  collectors.  Many  of  them  are  of  unknown 
parentage,  and  the  names  which  are  attached  to 
them  have  no  significance  to-day.  But  these 
lays  are  so  graphic,  and  even  dramatic,  that  they 
sound  like  the  trumpet  of  a  heroic  age.  So, 
too,  are  the  songs  of  war  and  politics  which 
were  evolved  during  the  long  struggle  between 
Scotland  and  England,  and  afterwards  in  the 
bitter  feuds  between  the  Jacobins  and  the  Loy- 
alists. These  breathe  the  intensity  of  the 
Scotch  character,  an  intensity  which  under  the 
pressure  of  civil  conflict  often  became  ferocity 
and  cruelty,  hard  to  reconcile  with  the  amiable 
and  generous  nature  of  the  race. ' ' 


[89] 


Edward  Harrigan 
At  Schroon  Lake 


<5 


5^ 
CO 


IP 


VII 

Edward  Harrigan 
At  Schroon  Lake 

IN  the  southern  part  of  that  paradise  the 
Adirondacks  lies  Schroon  Lake,  one  of 
the  most  beautiful  bodies  of  water  on  the 
American  Continent.  A  wild  mountain  coun- 
try stretches  between  it  and  Lakes  George  and 
Champlain  to  the  east;  a  virgin  forest,  broken 
by  silver  streams,  forms  the  western  landscape; 
while  to  the  north,  mountains  outline  the 
horizon,  culminating  in  the  ring  of  the  Appa- 
lachian range,  Mount  Marcy.  From  spring 
till  snowfall  the  air  is  filled  with  ozone  and  the 
balsamic  breath  of  the  north  woods.  The 
waters  swarm  with  fish,  the  air  with  birds,  and 
in  the  forests  are  deer,  foxes,  and  the  other 
four-footed  children  of  the  grove.  Agriculture 
has  invaded  the  territory,  but  only  enough  to 
make  infrequent  clearings  in  the  primeval  for- 
est. The  march  of  improvement  seems  to  have 
stopped  short  at  the  borders  of  Lake  Champlain 
and  Lake  George.  Life  is  not  disturbed  by 
the  roar  of  engines  and  machinery,  by  the  thun- 
[93] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

der  of  multitudes  and  the  discordant  noises  of 
a  great  city.  Everything  invites  to  rest  and  to 
the  contemplation  of  good  old  Mother  Nature. 

The  invitation  is  known  to  the  world,  and 
has  been  accepted  by  tens  of  thousands  of  happy 
guests.  Of  these  quite  a  number  live  up  in 
this  Garden  of  Eden  the  year  through ;  but  the 
vast  army  comes  northward  and  goes  southward 
with  the  sun,  so  that  the  woods  are  populous 
in  midsummer,  and  halls  of  silence  when  the 
snow  covers  the  ground.  Among  the  regular 
guests,  one  of  the  most  inveterate  is  Edward 
Harrigan,  the  actor,  playwright,  and  author. 
His  home  is  an  old-fashioned  structure  not  far 
from  the  shore  of  Schroon  Lake,  and  is  the 
centre  of  what  his  neighbors  call  a  farm.  For 
it  Mr.  Harrigan  has  a  different  term. 

"  Yes,"  he  says,  M  I  have  a  farm,  if  you 
want  to  call  it  such.  It  was  a  farm  some  time 
in  the  dear,  dead  past,  when  a  philosophic  agri- 
culturist endeavored  to  raise  oats  from  blocks 
of  granite  and  to  cultivate  strawberries  in  trout 
streams.  But  it  is  so  no  more.  My  only  ten- 
ant is  Nature;  she  runs  the  fields  to  suit  her- 
self, and  she  does  the  best  work  you  ever  saw 
in  this  world.  She  has  covered  up  the  fences 
until  they  look  like  green  bowers  or  the  lanes 
[94] 


Edward  Harrigan 

of  old  Ireland.  She  has  put  a  fine  varnish  of 
mosses  and  lichens  on  my  cottage  and  build- 
ings until  no  one  would  suspect  that  their 
owner  was  anything  but  a  first-class  mossback. 
She  has  sowed  weeds,  vines,  briers,  and  lots  of 
things  for  which  botanists  have  unpronounc- 
able  names,  until  the  place  is  the  finest  jungle 
this  side  of  India.  If  it  were  not  so  cold,  you 
could  lie  off"  under  a  tree  and  imagine  that  there 
was  a  tiger  in  the  potato  patch  and  an  elephant 
in  the  orchard. 

u  I  think  I  am  a  philanthropist  in  my  farm- 
ing, because  I  let  my  neighbors  take  everything 
they  want.  They  mow  my  grass  and  carry  it 
away  with  them;  they  trim  the  trees  and  use 
the  beautiful  trimmings,  I  am  told,  for  fire- 
wood ;  and  altogether  we  have  a  happy  family. 
The  farm  costs  me  nothing  but  the  taxes;  the 
neighbors  keep  it  habitable  to  a  certain  extent, 
and  charge  me  nothing  for  their  services." 

Near  the  Harrigan  house  is  a  wilderness  of 
flowers,  which  indicates  that  both  the  owner 
and  his  bright-eyed  wife  have  a  deep  love  for 
nature's  fairest  ornament. 

(l  I  recommend  flowers,"  says  Harrigan,  il  as 
an  aid  to  poetic  literature.  I  never  go  into  my 
garden,  especially  if  there  be  fair  friends  with 
[95] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

me,  without  reciting  poetry.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary to  know  much  about  flowers  so  long  as  the 
colors  fit.  Every  one  knows  that  roses  are  red 
and  violets  are  blue ;  that  the  daisy  is  a  (  wee, 
modest,  crimson-tipped  flow'r';  that  forget-me- 
nots  should  always  be  handed  to  a  spoony  young 
man,  and  that  buttercups  should  be  rubbed  under 
the  chin  of  a  pretty  girl  to  ascertain  whether  she 
loves  butter  or  not.  I  am  not  quite  certain, 
but  I  think  dahlias  have  something  to  do  with 
pride,  and  that  the  heartsease  is  identified  with 
tender  sentiments.  It  does  not  make  any  dif- 
ference if  you  forget  what  flower  is  meant  when 
you  are  entertaining  your  guests,  so  long  as  you 
have  the  quotation  pat.  Take  the  first  flower 
with  the  right  color,  and  then  quote  away." 

Over  the   door  of  the  house  should   be  in- 
scribed FalstafPs  immortal  line, 

* (  Shall  I  Not  Take  Mine  Ease  in  Mine 
Own  Inn  ?  " 

The  whole  place  is  imbued  with  an  atmos- 
phere of  restful  idleness.  Here  Mr.  Harrigan 
and  his  family  have  been  spending  their  sum- 
mers for  many  years,  and  the  arrangements 
show  the  results  of  a  long  inhabitancy  by  one 
[96] 


Edward  Harrigan 

group  of  inmates.  There  are  all  the  conven- 
iences which  express  the  personal  desires  of  the 
individual.  Here  is  a  corner  sacred  to  fishing 
tackle,  where  rods,  new  and  old,  indicate  the 
angler.  In  another  corner  are  fowling  pieces, 
while  here  and  there  and  everywhere  are  reading 
chairs,  book-shelves,  and  comfortable  tables, 
which  show  that  the  people  of  the  house  are 
devoted  to  literary  joys,  if  not  pursuits.  In  the 
case  of  Mr.  Harrigan  both  indications  are  borne 
out  by  the  facts.  Here  during  the  holidays  he 
reads,  edits,  revises,  and  writes.  It  was  in  this 
cosey  home  that  he  prepared  the  play  of  u  In- 
vestigation," and  changed  and  improved  nearly 
every  one  of  the  twenty  dramas  of  New  York 
life  which  won  him  name  and  fame. 

If  the  creations  of  the  brain  could  be  mate- 
rialized, the  house  would  be  filled  with  the 
blithest  company  ever  gathered  under  a  single 
roof.  Here  would  be  Dan  Mulligan,  poor  and 
rich,  and  poor  again ;  but,  no  matter  what  the 
condition  of  his  pocket,  always  the  same  mad, 
merry,  manly,  and  fascinating  soul;  here  would 
be  quaint  Mrs.  Mulligan,  with  vast  ambition 
and  deficient  grammar,  kindly  heart,  and  shrew- 
ish tongue;  here  would  be  the  Ancient  Order 
of  Full  Moons,  with  their  Ethiopian  drollery  and 
7  [97] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

ridiculous  ceremony;  here  would  be  the  tough 
boys  and  girls  of  the  Bowery,  rough  diamonds 
one  and  all ;  here  Mr.  Riley  and  his  Four  Hun- 
dred, the  German  undertaker  Lochmuller,  the 
Chinese  laundryman,  the  newsboy,  and  the 
policeman;  and  here,  sitting  in  a  corner,  with 
loving  eyes  gleaming  upon  those  about  him, 
would  sit  Old  Lavender,  as  if  in  consecration 
of  the  place.  Some  artist  once  drew  a  striking 
picture  in  which  Charles  Dickens,  while  clos- 
ing his  eyes  over  his  cigar,  became  surrounded 
with  the  many  characters  of  his  novels.  They 
formed  a  wondrous  host,  and  each  was  a  figure 
of  strange  attractiveness.  If  it  could  be  done 
to  Edward  Harrigan  a  more  generous  canvas 
would  be  required,  and  a  similar  army  of  happy 
incarnations  would  decorate  the  surface. 

u  I  cannot  say  that  I  do  overmuch  work," 
quoth  the  comedian,  i  c  when  I  am  up  at  Schroon ; 
there  are  too  many  other  things  to  attend  to.  I 
find  it  necessary  every  day  to  look  carefully  over 
at  the  village  to  see  that  no  building  has  taken 
flight  during  the  night.  Nothing  would  give 
me  more  pain  than  to  have  that  village  of 
Schroon  suddenly  abscond  while  I  was  sleep- 
ing. I  feel  that  I  have  a  vested  interest  in 
every  house.  It  is  not  because  they  are  valu- 
[98] 


Edward  Harrigan 

able  or  particularly  beautiful,  but  it  is  because 
they  are  old  friends. 

u  There  are  several  toward  which  I  feel  as  a 
little  boy  does  toward  an  aged  grandsire.  They 
have  not  been  painted  since  the  time  of  Colum- 
bus, and  nature  has  decorated  them  with  fungus 
until  they  look  as  if  they  were  arrayed  in  robes 
of  velvet.  The  years  have  undermined  them, 
until  many  have  to  be  propped  up  just  as  old 
men  are  supported  by  crutches.  I  know  that 
some  day  a  strong  wind  will  come  along,  and 
then  good-by  old  barn  and  ancient  shed;  and, 
between  ourselves,  I  am  a-watching  for  that 
wind. 

u  Then  I  have  to  attend  to  my  deep  studies 
in  ichthyology.  People  out  here  say  I  am  a 
fisherman,  but  that  is  arrant  nonsense.  I  do 
not  care  whether  I  catch  a  fish  or  not;  and  as 
for  knowing  their  habits,  I  am  just  as  ignorant 
as  the  young  man  who  comes  up  from  New 
York  with  a  five-hundred-dollar  fishing  tackle, 
and  who  has  to  hire  a  country  boy  to  catch 
fishes  for  him  with  a  worm  and  a  bent  needle. 
I  study  fishes  as  a  philosopher.  I  like  to  pon- 
der upon  what  they  mean  when  they  poise  per- 
fectly still  for  two  hours  in  front  of  my  hook 
without  ever  moving  either  toward  or  away  from 
[99] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

me.  Then  I  love  to  debate  as  to  when  or  how 
they  sleep,  or  if  they  sleep  at  all,  or  if  they  are 
troubled  with  chronic  insomnia. 

"  I  am  a  great  hunter,  and  I  hunt  upon  a 
basis  of  common  sense.  I  stay  at  home  and 
have  my  boys  go  out  and  do  all  the  hard  work 
for  me.  If  they  bag  a  bird  or  get  a  rabbit  or 
capture  a  deer,  why  I  eat  the  spoils.  In  this 
way  I  manage  to  have  a  reasonable  amount  of 
game  every  year  to  keep  up  my  record  as  a 
sportsman,  while  all  the  labor  and  suffering  of 
the  pastime  are  borne  by  those  near  and  dear  to 
me.  I  have  killed  a  great  many  deer  by  proxy, 
and  likewise  secured  hundreds  of  game  birds  of 
every  sort.  You  can  safely  apply  to  me  for  all 
information  concerning  hunting  in  the  Adiron- 
dacks." 

Mr.  Harrigan  makes  an  ideal  host.  He  sings 
well,  and  has  an  endless  repertoire  of  songs  and 
ballads  at  the  tip  of  his  tongue.  Many,  if  not 
most,  of  these  are  echoes  of  his  long  career 
upon  the  stage;  but  others  are  melodic  gems 
that  he  has  picked  up  from  Irish,  German, 
French,  and  other  sources.  As  a  raconteur  he 
is  a  star  in  his  own  right.  Here  his  talent 
as  a  great  comedian  has  full  play,  and  to  hear 
him  tell  and  act  a  story  is  a  performance  equal 
[ioo] 


Edward  Harrigan 

to  anything  witnessed  upon  the  metropolitan 
boards.  This  quality  makes  him  very  popular, 
and  attracts  to  him  a  never-ending  circle  of 
friends  and  acquaintances.  Almost  every  day 
in  the  summertide,  when  at  home  in  the  Adiron- 
dacks,  he  is  the  centre  of  a  delightful  group, 
who  sit  spellbound  as  he  draws  picturesque  jest 
or  story  from  either  memory  or  the  imagination. 
In  appearance  he  looks  more  like  a  well- 
groomed  and  intellectual  member  of  the  clergy 
than  like  an  actor.  His  features  are  clear  cut 
and  almost  classic  in  their  regularity,  and  his 
figure  that  of  a  well-built  and  well-nourished 
man.  The  years  have  told  lightly  upon  him. 
Though  well  on  in  the  fifties,  he  would  readily 
pass  muster  for  one  on  the  sunny  side  of  forty. 
He  is  a  New  Yorker  by  birth,  education,  and 
life's  work.  He  started  at  the  bottom  of  the 
ladder,  and  worked  his  way  upward  to  his  pres- 
ent position.  No  man  has  done  more  to  en- 
dear the  stage  to  the  public,  and  none  has  ever 
set  cleaner  and  higher  standards  in  the  presen- 
tation of  plays.  In  private  life,  as  in  his  pro- 
fessional work,  his  voice  once  heard  will  not 
be  forgotten.  It  has  the  clear  enunciation  of 
the  Irish  gentleman;  it  is  the  vehicle  of  the 
rich  vocabulary  of  the  man  who  has  studied, 
[ioil 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

travelled,  and  seen  the  world,  and  beyond  this 
it  possesses  a  certain  musical  quality  that  is 
exceedingly  rare. 

The  writer  cannot  forget  an  afternoon  when 
Mr.  Harrigan  was  depicting  to  a  circle  of  smil- 
ing friends  his  experiences  in  Salt  Lake  City 
in  the  old  days  when  the  Gentile  population 
was  very  small.  His  description  of  how  the 
families  marched  into  the  theatre,  each  headed 
by  a  dignified,  bearded  man,  followed  by  a  regi- 
ment of  wives  and  children;  and  how,  when 
they  were  all  seated,  each  paterfamilias,  stand- 
ing up,  ran  his  eyes  over  the  lot,  as  if  calling 
an  inaudible  roll,  was  one  of  the  most  delight- 
ful bits  of  humor  that  was  ever  told  to  a  party 
of  friends. 


[102] 


Annie   Ward  Tiffany 

By  the  Sea-shore. 


oq 


ft 


VIII 

Annie    Ward  Tiffany 

By  the  Sea-shore 

A  T  the  head  of  Buzzard's  Bay,  Massachu- 
/%  setts,  is  a  beautiful  little  harbor  with 

-JL  \.  the  unpoetic  name  of  Buttermilk 
Bay,  which  was  so  named  by  the  old  Puri- 
tans because  the  chop-sea  made  its  waters  a  lac- 
teal white.  Upon  the  shore  is  a  dramatic  col- 
ony known  by  the  farmers  as  Jeffersontown 
because  the  head  and  front  of  the  offending 
is  none  other  than  Joseph  Jefferson.  Next 
to  him  in  popular  esteem  is  Annie  Ward  Tif- 
fany, who  in  private  life  is  Mrs.  C.  H.  Green. 
Her  home  is  a  cosey  rambling  cottage,  half  con- 
tinental and  half  Tiffany,  as  her  neighbors 
call  it.  It  stands  upon  a  lawn,  and  from  its 
spreading  veranda  can  be  seen  the  blue  waters 
of  the  bay  and  the  thick  shady  groves  which 
make  so  charming  a  feature  of  the  territory. 
All  through  the  ground  are  shells  of  various 
sorts,  and  all  over  the  house  are  vines. 

"  I   do    not    mind    confessing,"    said    Miss 
Tiffany,  "that  I  love  to  study  nature,  in  a  very 
[105] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

humble  way,  and  that  I  have  two  fads — one 
is  vines,  and  the  other,  sea-shells.  They  are 
very  satisfactory  hobbies.  The  beauty  of  a 
vine  is  that  after  you  once  plant  it,  it  takes  care 
of  itself.  Now  if  you  have  a  rose,  you  have  to 
be  very  careful,  and  even  then  it  is  generally 
certain  to  produce  no  flowers,  so  that  your  time 
is  all  wasted  ;  but  with  these  dear  vines,  they 
grow  and  grow,  and  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  get 
the  scissors  and  trim  them  every  now  and  then. 
There  is  no  strain  upon  the  mind.  It  is  the 
same  thing  with  sea-shells.  They  never  run 
away  from  you,  but  just  lie  still  and  wait  to  be 
picked  up.  You  take  people  who  collects  birds' 
eggs,  birds,  butterflies,  insects,  and  other  things, 
and  they  are  always  hurrying  and  worrying  as 
if  they  had  the  trouble  of  the  world  upon  their 
shoulders.  But  with  shells  there  is  no  bother 
at  all.  If  you  lose  one,  or  your  husband  takes 
out  one  and  breaks  it,  just  stroll  down  to  the 
beach  and  get  another,  and  your  collection  is 
complete  again." 

The  veranda  would  cheer  the  heart  of  an 
athlete.  There  is  a  punching-bag  at  one  place 
and  hammocks  at  others;  there  are  easy  bam- 
boo chairs  here  and  there,  which  invite  the 
passer-by  to  sit  down  and  do  nothing,  and  in 
[io6] 


Annie  Ward  ^Tiffany 

the  hottest  day  of  summer  there  are  cooling 
shade  and  an  inspiring  breeze  from  the  sea. 

"  A  person  could  get  very  strong  here,"  said 
Miss  Tiffany,  "if  it  were  not  for  the  sedative 
action  of  the  air.  If  you  exercise  a  minute, 
you  want  to  lie  off  in  the  hammock  for  three 
hours." 

The  interior  of  the  house  is  as  comfortable 
as  the  veranda.  It  is  finished  in  hard  wood,  and 
fairly  shines  with  its  cleanness.  In  the  library 
a  capital  selection  of  books  appeals  to  the  reader, 
and  the  living-rooms  are  models  of  convenience. 
The  general  color  effect  is  blue  and  white,  to 
suggest  the  heavens  in  May,  when  they  are  dap- 
pled with  white  clouds. 

"  The  best  feature  of  my  dining-room,"  said 
the  hostess,  as  she  ushered  the  visitor  through 
the  place,  "is  the  diamond  window.  This  is 
made  to  imitate  a  porthole  on  ship-board,  and  is 
an  aid  to  the  imagination.  You  sit  down,  look 
at  it  fixedly,  and  fancy  you  are  at  sea.  It  is 
almost  as  good  as  crossing  the  ocean,  and  you 
never  get  sea-sick." 

The  old-fashioned  drawing-room,  with  its 
fireplace,  is  very  alluring,  and  would  be  antique 
but  for  the  cosey-corner  in  which  the  latest  mod- 
ern comfort  is  achieved.  Upon  the  walls  are 
[107] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

many  pictures,  but  those  which  are  prized  the 
most  are  paintings  by  Joseph  Jefferson,  which 
he  presented  to  the  "  Shamrock,"  as  he  calls 
the  mistress  of  the  cottage.  The  spirit  of  the 
place  is  rest  and  reading,  exercise  and  fresh  air. 
No  matter  in  what  room  you  may  be,  each  win- 
dow opens  upon  a  landscape  of  calm  and  serene 
beauty.  Through  the  house  the  salt  breeze 
blows  day  and  night.  On  the  veranda  or  the 
lawn  there  is  always  a  party  of  friends  and 
young  people  laughing  and  playing,  and  into 
each  window  and  embrasure  the  vines  come 
creeping  as  if  they  had  suddenly  become  soci- 
able and  wanted  to  join  the  family. 

"The  name  of  my  cottage,"  remarked  the 
hostess,  "is  more  practical  than  poetic.  It  is 
best  known  as  c  Biddy's  Nest.'  It  is  also  called 
c  Lady  Blarney's  Castle.'  Here  I  come  when 
the  season  closes,  and  do  little  or  nothing  until 
I  am  called  away  by  my  professional  work  in 
the  fall.  I  make  believe  fish,  but  fishes  always 
avoid  my  hook;  and  I  do  just  enough  bicycling 
to  keep  my  wheel  from  wearing  out  from  rust. 
I  read  and  talk,  and  really  I  do  exercise  some, 
but  not  enough  to  arouse  any  fear  of  over-strain- 
ing my  muscles.  If  I  were  going  to  give  it  a 
literary  name  I  should  call  it  c  The  Hall  of 
[108J 


Annie  Ward  Tiffany 

Happy  Indolence.'  When  I  am  in  the  city  I 
live  or  exist  in  Thirty-ninth  Street,  near  Broad- 
way, and  it  is  a  very  enjoyable  place.  But  this 
is  my  real  home,  and  here  I  find  the  happiest 
hours  of  my  life.  We  have  pleasant  neigh- 
bors, genial  friends,  health,  and  good  spirits. 
What,  after  all,  will  give  a  person  greater  con- 
tent ? 

cc  My  professional  life  has  been  quite  long 
and  varied  in  regard  to  the  number  of  roles 
played,  but  not  in  reference  to  conduct  or 
changes.  I  went  upon  the  stage  at  an  early 
age,  rose  rapidly,  and  when  still  a  young  woman 
was  playing  leading  parts.  I  look  back  and 
smile  at  those  days  when  I  acted  Camille,  ^Juliet, 
and  Viola.  I  did  very  fairly,  and  thought  that 
I  would  keep  on  in  that  line  of  characters  during 
the  rest  of  my  life.  But  this  was  not  to  be.  I 
happened  to  be  cast  once  in  a  role  of  an  Irish- 
woman, which  was  comedy,  or  rather  c  charac- 
ter,' in  its  nature.  In  this  I  was  singularly 
successful,  and  it  suddenly  dawned  upon  me 
that  I  really  had  greater  talent  for  this  kind  of 
work  than  I  had  for  the  other.  I  made  my 
first  hit  in  this  type  of  part  in  c  The  Shadows  of 
a  Great  City,'  written  by  Mr.  Jefferson  and 
L.  R.  Sherwell.  From  that  time  on  I  have 
[109] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

appeared  chiefly  in  humorous  or  eccentric  parts. 
Besides  Biddy  Ronan^  which  was  my  role  in  c  The 
Shadows  of  a  Great  City,'  I  have  also  had  long 
runs  as  Lady  Blarney ,  and  the  c  Step-daughter. ' 
The  Irish  drama  seems  to  grow  in  popularity 
with  the  years,  and  Irish  character  parts  never 
lose  their  hold  upon  the  public  heart.  I  do  not 
think  any  one  can  play  them  thoroughly  unless 
he  has  been  to  Ireland  and  studied  the  various 
types  to  be  found  in  the  country  and  towns  as 
well  as  in  the  cities.  It  is  possible  to  find 
models  in  New  York,  but  the  new-comers  are  so 
quickly  modified  by  American  influences  that 
they  lose  their  native  flavor  to  a  considerable 
extent.  I  have  run  across  the  ocean  a  number 
of  times,  and  have  studied,  I  think,  nearly 
every  Irish  class  from  the  Corkonians  in  the 
south  to  the  4  Far-downs, '  as  they  are  called,  up 
in  the  north. 

cc  The  secret  of  the  success  of  the  Hibernian 
character  lies  in  its  buoyancy  and  fun.  Pat  and 
Biddy  seldom  brood  and  never  despair.  Even 
in  their  deepest  woe  they  are  bound  to  perceive 
the  slightest  element  of  fun.  They  are  quick 
in  their  perceptions,  and  have  a  knack  of  using 
picturesque  words  and  phrases.  It  is  this  com- 
bination which  appeals  to  every  one,  and  espe- 
[no] 


Annie  Ward  Tiffany 

cially  to  those  who  are  unable  to  create  humor. 
English  and  Americans,  Scotch  and  Welsh 
laugh  just  as  heartily  over  poor  Pat  as  do  his 
own  people." 

When  Miss  Tiffany  comes  to  her  city  home 
she  becomes  a  busy  and  active  member  of  the 
community.  Her  apartments  in  Thirty-ninth 
Street  have  a  strong  literary  and  artistic  charac- 
ter, beneath  which  can  be  seen  the  domestic 
tendencies.  She  is  a  skilful  needlewoman,  and 
takes  pleasure  in  embroidery,  crotcheting,  and 
art  designing.  She  entertains  largely,  and  is  in- 
terested in  the  welfare  of  members  of  her  pro- 
fession who  have  been  unfortunate.  To  them 
her  home  is  a  house  of  refuge,  and  many  are 
the  victims  of  ill-luck  who  have  enjoyed  her 
bounty.  She  herself  is  the  centre  of  a  large 
group  of  friends.  In  her  professional  career 
she  has  been  associated  with  many  of  the  lead- 
ing figures  of  the  American  theatre  for  the  past 
thirty  years.  A  memory  of  rare  power  enables 
her  to  relate  interesting  anecdotes  respecting  ac- 
tors, managers,  theatres,  and  professional  in- 
cidents that  would  fill  several  volumes.  She 
carries  with  her  from  the  country  her  love  of 
fresh  air  and  exercise,  and  spends  much  of  her 
leisure  in  long  walks  upon  the  great  thorough- 
[in] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

fares,  studying  the  architecture  and  the  people  of 
the  metropolis. 

"We  are  too  apt,"  she  said,  "to  settle  down 
in  a  rut  and  neglect  our  locomotor  muscles. 
There  is  no  aid  to  health  so  effective  as  a  good 
walk,  and  I  ascribe  much  of  my  health  to  the 
pedestrian  habits  that  I  have  cultivated  all  my 
life.  The  practice  of  taking  walks  has  a  pro- 
fessional value.  In  strolling  through  a  large 
city  one  is  always  bound  to  encounter  odd  peo- 
ple and  to  see  odd  incidents.  Nearly  all  have 
dramatic  value,  and  some  are  indescribably 
funny.  Many  of  the  best  bits  of  comedy  upon 
the  boards  have  been  taken  from  sources  of  this 
sort,  and  I  doubt  not  but  that  the  supply  in  a 
city  like  New  York  is  inexhaustible. ' ' 


[112] 


May   Robson 
The  Domestic  Side  of  a  Great  Artist 


s? 


* 


IX 

May    Robson 

The  Domestic  Side  of  a  Great  Artist 

IT  is  a  rare  thing  for  a  woman  to  excel  as  a 
character  artist  and  comedian.  The  dis- 
guise of  a  pleasing  individuality;  the  ob- 
literation of  all  the  fine,  attractive  elements  of  a 
personality ;  and  the  substitution  of  those  which 
are  grotesque,  awkward,  satirical,  or  ridiculous, 
seem  to  require  a  masculine  rather  than  a  femi- 
nine temperament.  For  one  woman  who  has 
succeeded  in  roles  of  this  description,  there  have 
been  twenty  men.  It  is  rarer  still  when  the 
woman  is  beautiful  and  cultured.  Such  a  type 
calls  up  Rosalind  rather  than  Audrey;  Lydia 
Languish  rather  than  Mrs.  Malaprop ;  Juliet 
rather  than  the  Nurse ;  yet  this  is  what  May 
Robson,  who  in  private  life  is  Mrs.  Brown,  the 
wife  of  Dr.  Augustus  H.  Brown,  has  done,  so 
well  as  to  make  herself  famous.  Those  who 
have  not  met  her  in  private  life  can  form  no 
conception  of  the  real  woman  who  exists  be- 
neath the  droll  creations  which  she  has  presented 
to  the  public  during  the  past  seventeen  years, 
[us] 


Eminent  Actors  in  "Their  Homes 

The  power  of  make-up  is  so  efficient  that  her 
name  suggests,  it  may  be,  a  ghastly  old  maid  \  a 
broken-down  and  senile  French  servant ;  a  coarse, 
drawling,  country  maid  ;  a  vulgar  domestic  off  for 
a  day's  outing  ;  a  caricature  upon  some  celebrity  ; 
or  any  possible  individuality  excepting  her  own. 

Yet  paint  and  powder  do  not  altogether  dis- 
guise her.  They  cannot  detract  from  her  tall 
stature,  her  symmetric  figure,  and  her  graceful 
outlines.  Neither  do  they  conceal  altogether 
her  bright,  intellectual  eyes.  When  she  does 
not  wear  a  wig,  any  one  can  admire  her  mane 
of  golden-brown  hair.  At  times  she  plays  in 
parts  which  permit  her  to  be  natural  in  her  gait 
and  carriage.  She  is  then  notable  for  her  grace 
and  easy  bearing.  By  seeing  her  in  a  dozen 
roles  it  would  be  possible  to  catch  in  each  a 
glimpse  of  her  real  self,  and  by  putting  these 
together  form  a  complete  image  of  her  individu- 
ality. In  no  other  way  can  a  theatre-goer  ob- 
tain the  slightest  conception  of  this  distinguished 
member  of  the  American  stage. 

A  woman  who  for  the  sake  of  her  art  is  will- 
ing to  sacrifice  for  the  time  being  all  her  come- 
liness must  have  a  high  regard  for  aesthetics. 
That  this  is  the  case  of  Miss  Robson  is  easily 
ascertained  by  a  visit  to  her  at  her  home,  a  fine 
[116] 


May  Robson 

mansion  on  West  One  Hundred  and  Thirty- 
sixth  Street,  New  York  City,  not  far  from 
Morningside  Park  and  the  rocky  ridge  on  which 
tower  Columbia,  Barnard,  and  Teachers'  col- 
leges, and  the  slowly  growing  Cathedral  of  St. 
John  the  Divine.  This  is  one  of  the  fairest 
residential  sections  of  Manhattan,  and  the  en- 
vironment is  singularly  free  from  the  noise  of 
trade,  the  mad  rush  of  the  business  world,  and 
the  squalor  and  suffering  of  the  tenement-house 
districts.  A  glance  at  the  interior  of  the  home 
reveals  the  real  characteristics  of  its  owner. 
Masterpieces  of  the  French  poets  show  her  to 
be  familiar  with  the  language  and  literature  of 
that  land;  a  piano  and  piles' of  music  show  a 
strong  love  for  the  melodic ;  sketches  of  all  sorts, 
ranging  from  mere  outlines  to  finished  canvas, 
indicate  that  the  occupant  is  skilled  with  the 
brush  and  pencil.  Books,  pictures,  curios,  oddi- 
ties, and  objects  of  scientific  interest  are  inti- 
mations of  a  versatility  of  the  rarest  kind. 

The  house  is  a  reflection  of  Miss  Robson. 
Its  prevailing  character  is  that  of  refinement,  de- 
mureness,  and  comfort.  The  wall  papers  are 
of  velvet,  and  the  style  of  the  furniture  colonial. 
The  chairs  and  sofas  are  pleasant  to  look  upon, 
and  pleasanter  to  employ.  It  is  obvious  that 
[ii7] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

they  have  been  selected  by  a  person  who  has 
dwelt  in  many  lands.  Below  the  general  expres- 
sion are  sub-expressions  which  indicate  qualities. 
Every  here  and  there  is  a  surprise,  something 
which  elicits  a  shrug,  a  smile,  or  a  quickening 
of  the  breath.  You  know  that  the  owner  is  a 
wit  and  humorist,  if  not  a  practical  joker.  The 
placing  of  delicious  little  bits  of  pictorial  drollery 
alongside  of  serious  tableaux  drawn  in  the  same 
shade  and  color  is  an  illustration  in  point.  An- 
other trick  of  this  kind  is  an  ingenious  piano 
so  constructed  that  it  converts  the  drawing-room 
into  two  apartments.  Equally  amusing  is  the 
building  of  a  bookcase  in  front  of  a  pier-glass 
so  as  to  cover  a  goodly  portion  of  the  gleaming 
surface  of  the  latter. 

CCI  got  tired  of  the  old  glass,"  said  Miss 
Robson,  "and  did  not  know  what  to  do  with 
it.  I  liked  it  too  well  to  send  it  away.  I  am 
not  a  good  shot,  so  I  did  not  care  to  throw  any- 
thing at  it,  and  I  therefore  hired  a  joiner  to 
build  a  bookcase  that  would  disturb  the  self- 
satisfied  and  patronizing  expression  of  the  mir- 
ror, and  give  it  a  little  local  tone  and  character. 
I  cannot  look  at  it  without  it  seeming  to  re- 
proach me  for  having  half-hidden  it  behind  a  lot 
of  books.  There  is  a  jealousy,  I  believe,  be- 
[118] 


May  Robson 

tween  looking-glasses  and  books.  The  former 
reflect  the  body;  the  latter,  the  mind;  and  for 
that  reason  every  mirror  has  a  feeling  of  con- 
tempt for  all  the  products  of  the  printing-press." 

The  spirit  of  fun,  half-quizzical  and  half- 
mischievous,  crops  out  in  the  most  unexpected 
places.  In  the  windows  are  many  potted  plants. 
In  each  pot  the  flower  is  a  beautiful  creation, 
but  alongside  of  each  is  sprouting  some  com- 
mon plant  whose  seeds  have  been  blown  there 
by  the  wind. 

In  the  dining-room  is  an  old-fashioned  Jaco- 
bean coffer. 

"That  is  one  of  my  favorites,"  said  the 
owner.  "  Just  think  of  its  long  life  and  all  that 
it  has  seen  and  heard.  It  has  taken  part  in 
plots  and  conspiracies,  and  probably  witnessed 
hundreds  of  young  couples  making  love.  It 
was  gray-haired  before  Washington  was  born, 
and  it  may  have  seen  King  Charles,  Rochester, 
and  Buckingham.  It  has  not  any  hinges,  and 
so  I  make  believe  that  it  comes  down  from  the 
ages  before  hinges  were  invented.  You  need 
not  say  that  there  always  have  been  hinges,  be- 
cause there  must  have  been  a  time  when  the 
first  hinge  had  not  been  invented,  and  there  is 
no  reason  why  I  should  not  pretend  that  the 
[119] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

dear  old  chest  is  an  antediluvian.  There  is 
a  secret  drawer  inside,  mysterious  enough  to 
contain  a  lost  will,  rows  of  golden  doubloons, 
and  some  hideous  poison  from  the  Orient.  It 
did  not  have  any  of  these  things  at  all  when  we 
discovered  it.  We  found  it  one  day  by  acci- 
dent, and  my  heart  was  nearly  broken  when  it 
was  opened,  to  see  that  it  was  empty.  Some 
day  I  shall  get  up  some  strange  papers  full  of 
romance  and  tragedy  to  put  in  that  drawer,  and 
so  furnish  it  appropriately." 

In  the  same  room  is  a  large  collection  of 
steins. 

"Those,"  she  continued,  "are  the  map  of 
Germany  and  Austria.  In  travelling  it  is  a 
wise  rule  to  keep  a  memorandum  of  each  place 
you  visit.  Some  travellers  have  their  passports 
vised  in  every  city  until  the  parchment  looks 
like  a  worn-out  blotter.  Other  travellers  bring 
home  guide-books,  which  are  the  dullest  of  all 
reading.  In  our  case  Dr.  Brown  and  myself 
accumulate  steins.  Every  one  represents  a  city 
and  has  a  story  connected  with  it.  I  have  for- 
gotten the  stories,  and  I  do  not  quite  remember 
the  cities,  but  it  makes  a  delightful  map  of  the 
Fatherland,  all  the  same.  Those  ancient  brasses 
came  from  Waterloo.  I  got  them  by  accident, 
[120] 


May  Robson 

or  rather  by  mistake.  We  visited  a  house  on 
the  battlefield  where  they  offered  souvenirs  to 
the  unwary.  They  had  hundreds  of  relics,  and 
sold  so  many  that  I  knew  there  must  be  a  relic 
factory  in  the  immediate  neighborhood.  Of 
course,  I  would  not  buy  any,  because  I  could 
have  them  made  to  order  at  any  time  in  New 
York  for  one  quarter  of  the  money;  so  I  went 
prowling  through  the  old  place,  and  in  the  attic 
I  found  these  old  brasses  and  other  rubbage.  I 
asked  the  caretaker  how  much  these  pieces  were, 
and  was  told  that  they  were  not  for  sale,  but 
that  I  could  have  them  for  a  small  sum.  I 
purchased  them,  had  them  cleaned  nicely,  and 
they  are  about  the  best  curios  I  secured  that 
season." 

Her  china  closet  would  delight  any  lover  of 
ceramics.  She  has  a  weakness  for  the  potter's 
art,  and  at  one  time  in  her  career  was  a  suc- 
cessful artist  in  china  decorating.  The  collec- 
tion represents  her  tastes  and  work.  Some  of 
it  is  plain,  some  decorative  in  color,  and  others 
in  simple  or  chromatic  relief.  The  kilns  of 
nearly  every  nation  are  represented.  From 
England,  Wedgwood,  Worcester,  Doulton,  and 
Derby  have  sent  their  wares;  from  Germany, 
Berlin  and  Dresden;  from  France,  Sevres 
[  121  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

and  Paris;  from  Holland,  Delft  and  Leyden; 
and  from  Japan,  Kioto  and  Osaka.  Tower- 
ing over  all  is  a  vast  punch-bowl,  on  which 
the  following  inscription  tells  a  mute  story: 

"  POPPIE 
From  a  Few  of  Her  Many  Friends, 
May  20,  1894." 

In  her  boudoir  comfort,  ease,  and  beauty 
combine  to  produce  an  atmosphere  of  perfect 
content.  The  room  is  made  to  look  larger 
than  it  really  is  by  the  avoidance  of  all  dark 
colors.  The  coloring  of  the  walls  is  almost 
white;  the  furniture  is  in  pale  tints  or  enamel, 
and  on  the  floor  white  rugs  and  furs  reflect  the 
light  which  streams  in  through  the  windows. 
Everywhere  are  dashes  of  dainty  color.  A 
giant  armoire  looks  as  if  it  had  seen  service  in 
the  court  of  Louis  XV.,  while  lace  curtains  of 
rare  beauty  form  a  pleasing  background  to  the 
eye.  In  each  window  are  those  delights  of  the 
Southern  girl,  window-seats;  while  against  the 
wall  a  huge  sofa,  upholstered  in  creamy  white, 
invites  the  caller  to  sit  and  rest. 

The  remainder  of  the  mansion  is  marked  by 
the  same  character  as  the  boudoir,  dining-room, 
[122] 


May  Robson 

and  salon.      It  impresses  one  with  a  sense  of 
historic  knowledge  and  the  love  of  art. 

"I  do  not  know,"  said  Miss  Robson, 
"  whether  I  am  domestic  or  not.  In  one  re- 
spect I  am  not,  because  I  love  to  travel;  and 
every  summer  my  husband  and  I  take  a  trip 
abroad,  where  we  spend  the  happiest  weeks  of 
the  year.  I  was  educated  in  Paris  and  Belgium, 
and  I  have,  of  course,  the  deep  attachment  which 
every  one  feels  for  the  scenes  of  their  school 
days,  but  it  is  not  local.  I  take  as  much  joy 
in  visiting  Holland,  the  land  of  ducks,  dikes, 
and  draymen ;  Germany,  always  on  dress  parade ; 
or  Austria,  where  the  nation  seems  half  asleep. 
But  the  rest  of  the  year,  especially  when  I  am 
playing,  I  am  very  domestic,  and  like  my  own 
home.  I  do  not  indulge  much  in  social  func- 
tions, giving  only  one  c  at  home '  a  month.  Here 
I  read,  study  new  parts,  invent  stage  business, 
attend  to  my  writing  and  correspondence,  look 
after  household  matters,  and  paint.  I  was  a 
painter  before  I  became  a  player,  and  I  have 
never  lost  my  affection  for  the  palette  and  brush. 
I  have  worked  along  many  lines  in  illustrating, 
sketching,  making  pictures,  designing  stained 
glass,  and  goodness  only  knows  how  many  other 
forms  of  art.  What  talent  I  have  in  this  field 
[  123] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

has  been  of  much  use  to  me  in  make-up.  The 
training  which  my  former  profession  gave  me 
enables  me  to  detect  colors,  tints,  shades,  and 
shadows  in  the  eccentric  faces  I  meet  every  day 
on  the  street,  so  that  I  can  reproduce  them  at 
pleasure.  This  frees  me  from  the  conventional 
rules  of  the  stage,  which  treat  making  up  as  a 
stereotyped  affair,  and  not  as  a  special  study  in 
itself." 

Of  the  many  parts  assumed  by  Miss  Robson, 
the  more  prominent  have  been  Miss  Ashford,  in 
"The  Private  Secretary"  ;  Tilly,  in  "  The  Hoop 
of  Gold  "  ;  Crafer,  in  «  Liberty  Hall  "  ;  Kitty, 
in  "  Gloriana  "  ;  Melia,  in  "  Lady  Bountiful  "  ; 
Artemise,  in  "  A  Night's  Session  "  ;  and  Madam 
Pom-Pom,  in  "  Make  Way  for  the  Ladies." 


[124] 


David  Warjield 
At  Leisure 


David  IV ar field's  Studio. 


X 

David  Warjield 
At  Leisure 

IT  is  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  a 
trimly  built,  lithe  man  is  walking  briskly 
along  one  of  the  paths  of  that  beautiful 
enclosure,  Central  Park.  A  policeman  salutes 
him  with  a  pleasant  word,  and  is  saluted  in  turn 
with  equal  geniality.  A  horticulturist  calls  to 
him  from  a  flower  bed,  and  the  pedestrian,  facing 
about,  joins  the  gardener.  The  next  second  he 
is  discussing  some  new  flower  which  the  metrop- 
olis has  brought  from  a  foreign  land.  Five 
minutes  afterwards  you  encounter  him  under  the 
trees,  picking  up  the  leaves  which  have  fallen 
from  the  boughs,  or  collecting  mosses  and  other 
lowly  forms  of  vegetable  life.  Two  squirrels 
play  near  him,  showing  that  he  is  an  old  friend ; 
and  a  pert  sparrow  hops  in  front  of  him,  peer- 
ing up  into  his  visage,  as  if  to  inquire  why  he 
busied  himself  with  worthless  plants.  As  the 
man  looks  down  at  the  sparrow  you  can  under- 
stand why  the  bird  has  no  fear.  The  face  is 
[127] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

calm  and  thoughtful ;  the  blue-gray  eyes  are  clear, 
kindly,  and  magnetic ;  and  on  the  face  a  curious 
smile  suggests  a  mingling  of  joy  and  sorrow, 
temperamental  rather  than  emotional. 

This  is  David  Warfield,  the  character  actor, 
who  in  the  presentation  of  Russian,  Polish,  and 
Jewish  types  has  achieved  enduring  fame.  His 
excursions  in  Central  Park  are  a  part  of  his  well- 
ordered  life.  Every  day  he  tries  to  fill  his  lungs 
with  ozone,  and  to  offset  the  carbonic  acid  of 
the  stage  by  long  walks  in  the  open  and  by  com- 
munion with  nature  and  her  great  kingdom  of 
plants  and  animals.  To  this  practice  is  due  a 
health  and  vigor  which  have  enabled  him  to  stand 
the  strain  of  theatrical  work,  without  a  break- 
down for  many  years. 

"Breakdowns,"  he  says,  "come  from  using 
one  part  of  your  organism  too  much  and  other 
parts  too  little,  or  none  at  all.  The  unused 
functions  get  jealous  and  make  trouble  for  you. 
The  only  safe  rule  is  to  exercise  all  your  faculties, 
physical  as  well  as  mental,  and  then  you  will 
find  that  life  is  rather  worth  living,  and  that  your 
digestion,  sleeping,  and  conscience  will  rarely 
trouble  you." 

If  you  join  him  in  his  morning  walk,  you  will 
find  that  his  hour  for  reaching  home  is  fixed,  not 
[128] 


David  TVarjield 

by  the  watch  or  clock,  but  by  his  wife's  presence 
or  absence. 

"We  won't  go  home  until  noon,"  he  says, 
"  because  my  wife  is  marketing,  and  I  do  not 
want  to  enter  the  place  until  she  returns.  With- 
out her  it  is  lonely,  and  I  dislike  lonely  houses. ' ' 

The  declaration  is  suggestive  of  the  man's 
inner  nature.  He  is  sociable  in  the  sense  of 
desiring  the  company  of  those  who  are  near  and 
dear  to  him.  If  left  to  himself,  he  would  be- 
come an  inveterate  club  man.  Marriage  has 
converted  him  into  a  model  head  of  the  house- 
hold. His  home  is  on  the  west  side  of  Central 
Park,  not  far  from  Amsterdam  Avenue.  The 
moment  you  enter  it  you  are  impressed  with  an 
atmosphere  utterly  different  from  that  of  the 
neighborhood.  The  latter  is  essentially  modern 
and  Western.  The  intense  pressure  and  strain 
of  modern  life  is  symbolized  by  the  elevated  rail- 
way, and  the  electric  cars  that  go  whizzing  past, 
by  the  automobiles  which  steam  or  puff  along 
the  thoroughfares,  and  the  bustle  and  hum  of 
the  city.  The  buildings  are  all  new  and  full 
of  the  latest  conceits  and  contrivances  of  the 
builder  and  architect. 

Within,   everything   suggests  the    Far  East. 
Egypt,  Arabia,  Turkestan,  India,  Turkey,  and 
9  [  129  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

the  Holy  Land  have  been  drawn  upon  to  fur- 
nish and  decorate  his  home.  Theophile  Gautier 
would  be  at  ease  in  any  one  of  the  Warfield 
rooms.  In  the  music-room  the  ensemble  is  es- 
sentially Egyptian;  in  the  drawing-room  it  is 
Indian.  The  library  might  have  been  equipped 
by  the  Emir  of  Mocha  or  the  Governor  of 
Salonica.  Each  room  has  an  Oriental  character 
different  from  that  of  the  rest.  Everywhere  is 
rich  primary  color — royal  scarlet,  Tyrian  purple, 
yellow  and  red  gold,  silver  and  bronze,  banyan- 
green,  and  translucent  cinnamon.  These  are 
not  displayed  in  the  coarse  style  which  marks 
the  attempts  of  the  Occidental  to  employ  them 
for  ornamental  purposes,  but  are  so  combined 
as  to  produce  the  feeling  of  rich  warmth  and 
of  absolute  ease  so  characteristic  of  the  older 
civilizations  of  the  Mediterranean.  It  would 
not  be  a  surprise  to  a  visitor  if  through  the  cur- 
tains came  a  black  slave  bearing  a  fragrant 
chibouque  and  a  carafe  of  half-frozen  sherbet. 
In  both  the  salon  and  music-room  the  eye  rests 
pleasurably  upon  a  series  of  pedestals  in  white 
and  gold,  each  bearing  a  statue  or  bust.  Here 
is  Cleopatra  in  her  deathless  beauty;  here  a 
sylph-like  dancing  girl  such  as  might  have  de- 
lighted a  Sultan  or  Rajah ;  and  here  is  a  sphinx  in 
[130] 


David  Warfield 

bronze,  looking  with  calm  eyes  upon  the  books 
of  the  present  century.  On  the  walls  are  bril- 
liant pictures  of  characters  or  scenes  from  Mo- 
rocco, Cairo,  and  the  land  of  the  Euphrates. 
The  figures  upon  the  canvas  seem  at  home  in  the 
place  where  each  one  would  be  a  fitting  inmate. 

"  I  have  a  strong  love  for  these  Eastern 
wares,"  he  says,  "especially  the  Egyptian. 
There  is  a  certain  significance  as  well  as  beauty 
in  Nilotic  art  which  gives  me  a  curious  kind  of 
satisfaction.  They  express  repose,  content,  and 
the  absence  of  sorrow.  They  are  free  from 
what  Emerson  calls  c  the  spirit  of  divine  discon- 
tent. '  The  carving  on  yonder  stool  is  grateful 
to  the  eye ;  but,  beyond  this,  it  is  in  some  way  a 
miniature  of  the  mosques  and  minarets  of  Cairo 
and  Alexandria,  and,  beyond  these,  of  the  great 
temples  of  the  Nile.  Americans  take  pleasure 
in  the  work  of  Shakespeare,  who  lived  three 
hundred  years  ago  ;  the  people  of  Egypt  take 
pleasure  in  the  work  of  the  artists  of  forty  cen- 
turies ago,  and  express  their  feelings  in  the 
simple  furniture  and  ornamentation  of  their 
homes." 

In  the  music-room  the  central  figure  is  a 
concert  grand  piano.  Here  the  owner  passes 
some  time  every  day.  He  is  more  than  a  skilled 
[131] 


Eminent  Actors  in  "Their  Homes 

player,  being  a  composer  of  considerable  ability, 
and  possessing  the  rare  power  of  extemporization. 

"I  am  very  old-fashioned  in  my  musical 
tastes,"  he  says.  "My  heart  goes  out  to 
Beethoven  and  the  other  old  masters.  I  like 
many  of  the  new  composers,  and  every  now 
and  then  some  modern  composition  gives  me 
rare  joy  ;  but  as  a  regular  diet  give  me  the 
masterpieces  of  the  last  century,  when  Bach 
and  Beethoven  were  the  two  kings  of  the  world 
of  melody.  They  appeal  to  all  moods  and 
passions.  When  I  am  angry  the  sonata  will 
bring  calm,  and  when  I  am  weary  the  heroic 
symphony  will  restore  me  to  brisk  activity.  A 
nocturne  will  cure  insomnia,  and  a  prayer  or 
mass  will  enable  me  to  forgive  the  awful  ped- 
ler  who  is  screaming  his  wares  on  the  sidewalk 
in  front  of  my  house.  I  like,  too,  the  great 
song-writers.  In  my  pantheon  Schumann  and 
Schubert  have  golden  altars,  and  with  them  are 
a  score  of  composers  of  minor  note,  but  of  the 
same  school.  Yes,  I  suppose  I  am  a  classicist 
in  my  musical  yearnings." 

In  the   study  the   most   noticeable   detail    is 

an  open  volume  of  a  folio  Shakespeare.      The 

large   type   is  a  veritable   treat   to  the   eyes  in 

these  days  of  microscopic  printing.     Any  one 

[132] 


David  Warjield 

can  read  the  pages  at  a  yard's  distance.  The 
book  is  a  favorite  of  Mr.  Warfield,  and  from 
it  he  has  learned  to  recite,  from  beginning  to 
end,  seventeen  plays  of  the  immortal  drama- 
tist. The  walls  in  this  room  are  covered  with 
pictures  of  scenes  from  various  plays.  They 
are  arranged  with  great  ingenuity,  so  as  to  rep- 
resent a  map  of  the  United  States.  During  his 
professional  tours  he  has  played  and  kept  records 
of  his  parts  in  nearly  all  the  leading  cities  of  the 
land.  The  pictures  typify  these  scenes  or  parts, 
and  they  are  arranged  so  that  their  position  cor- 
responds to  the  city  on  the  map  of  the  Union 
wherein  they  were  produced.  Mr.  Warfield 
calls  it  a  theatrical  geography,  and  claims  that 
it  is  much  easier  to  remember  than  those  studied 
at  school  in  his  boyhood. 

"I  hope,"  he  says,  u  that  ere  my  career  is 
over  I  will  be  able  to  make  Shylock  lie  west  of 
c  The  Auctioneer,'  south  of  the  c  Merry  World, ' 
and  north  of  c  The  City  Directory. '  This  will 
be  much  easier  and  pleasanter  than  saying  that 
St.  Louis  is  west  of  Cincinnati,  east  of  Denver, 
south  of  Omaha,  and  north  of  New  Orleans." 

In  the  same  room  is  a  series  of  pictures  illus- 
trating the  actor's  studies  in  the  ghetto  ;  Here 
are  the  cantor  and  Russian  rabbi,  the  Schatchen 
[133] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

and  Schohat,  the  Polak  and  Galitzin,  the  Lithuak 
and  Belt.  The  furnishing  is  simple,  but  inviting, 
and  consists  in  the  main  of  well-filled  bookcases 
and  divans. 

"There  is  no  reason,"  says  the  actor,  "why 
in  reading  and  study  a  man  should  not  give 
his  body  perfect  rest  in  order  to  concentrate  his 
attention  upon  the  printed  page.  Why  should 
a  person  when  busy  with  a  book  sit  bolt  upright 
in  an  uncomfortable  library  chair  ?  If  he  does, 
he  is  bound  to  be  uneasy  and  miserable  before  an 
hour  has  gone  by." 

In  this  sanctum  Mr.  Warfield  does  his  work 
with  the  pen,  which  ranges  from  poetry  and 
dramatic  composition  down  to  every-day  corre- 
spondence. His  "copy  "  is  a  joy  to  the  printer, 
being  written  in  the  clear,  legible  hand  which 
gave  our  forefathers  such  delight.  One  of  his 
chief  social  recreations  consists  in  informal  din- 
ner parties  to  a  few  friends  of  tastes  similar  to 
his  own.  These  feasts  are  unique.  When  the 
meal  is  over,  the  function  becomes  one  of  rea- 
son and  of  fancy.  Here  Mr.  Warfield' s  talent 
of  entertaining  comes  into  full  play.  A  large 
fund  of  anecdote,  a  brilliant  imagination,  and  a 
wide  knowledge  of  English,  French,  and  Ger- 
man literature  enable  him  to  interest  all  hearers. 
[*34] 


David  Warfield 

He  often  recites  De  Musset's  masterpieces  and 
some  of  the  bright  verses  of  James  Whitcomb 
Riley  and  Eugene  Field;  but  his  Oriental  na- 
ture takes  its  largest  delight  in  the  stately  Per- 
sian Omar,  whose  famous  quatrains  are  usually 
heard  at  every  little  social  gathering.  His  favor- 
ite "  last  words  "  are  the  lines  : 

"  Yon  rising  moon  that  looks  for  us  again — 
How  oft  hereafter  will  she  wax  and  wane ; 
How  oft  hereafter  rising  look  for  us 
Through  this  same  garden — and  for  one  in  vain  ? 

And  when  like  her,  oh  Saki,  you  shall  pass 
Among  the  Guests  Star-scatter' d  on  the  Grass, 
And  in  your  blissful  errand  reach  the  spot 
Where  I  made  One — turn  down  an  empty  Glass  ! " 


[i35] 


Viola  Allen 

Her  Domestic  Gods 


^ 
a 
o 

«; 


XI 

Viola  Allen 
Her  Domestic  Gods 

THE  invisible  lines  along  which  a  home 
grows  are  drawn  partly  by  the  tastes 
and  partly  by  the  hopes  of  its  owner. 
The  artist  in  due  season  comes  to  be  shut  in  by 
a  studio,  and  the  soldier  by  quarters  half-way 
between  barracks  and  armory.  The  actor  draws 
to  himself  such  works  of  art  and  literature  as 
belong  to  his  profession  or  illustrate  the  subjects 
which  are  related  to  the  stage.  This  is  essen- 
tially the  case  with  the  home  of  Viola  Allen, 
which  is  near  Central  Park,  New  York  City. 
It  cannot  be  said  of  her  that  she  is  over  domes- 
tic, her  nature  being  too  intense  and  her  intel- 
lectuality too  aggressive  to  be  contented  with 
the  calm  existence  which  marks  those  who  have 
an  organic  love  for  the  household.  Was  she 
to  follow  her  bent,  she  would  probably  pass  her 
life  amid  the  great  capitals  of  the  world,  and 
more  especially  among  the  art  galleries,  mu- 
seums, and  libraries.  The  world  for  which 
she  was  intended  by  nature  or  Providence  is  the 
[139] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

world  of  the  mind  rather  than  that  which  is  cir- 
cumscribed by  four  walls  and  a  roof.  The 
residence  tells  the  story  very  clearly.  It  is 
artistic  and  essentially  literary  and  professional. 
Carved  furniture  and  bric-a-brac,  bits  of  color, 
and  things  of  beauty  are  everywhere  in  evi- 
dence. Almost  as  numerous  are  souvenirs  and 
little  tokens  from  friends.  The  souvenirs  be- 
tray the  poetry  of  the  woman's  heart.  In  each 
place  where  a  happy  hour  has  been  spent,  she 
has  obtained  some  valuable  or  trifling  art  work 
that  in  days  to  come  shall  serve  to  connect  her 
with  the  past;  on  the  other  hand,  the  memen- 
tos from  friends  are  eloquent  of  numberless  acts 
of  courtesy  and  generosity  to  those  who  have 
come  within  her  circle  during  the  many  years 
in  which  she  has  been  an  ornament  to  the  stage. 
The  feature  of  her  home  is  the  library. 
None  who  has  ever  seen  it  can  forget  its  wealth 
and  interest.  In  the  main  it  is  a  library  of  the 
stage,  more  complete  than  what  can  be  found 
in  any  of  the  great  collections,  excepting  the 
few  owned  by  nations  and  vast  corporations. 
It  was  started  by  Miss  Allen's  father,  himself 
an  actor  of  high  standing,  and  has  been  con- 
tinued by  her  to  the  present  time. 

Its  fame  has  gone  abroad  among  the  profes- 
[  140] 


Viola  Allen 

sion,  and  such  authorities  as  the  late  Augustin 
Daly,  Steele  Mackaye,  and  Frank  Mayo  have 
referred  to  it  in  the  highest  terms  of  praise.  In 
its  development  it  has  grown  along  many  lines, 
so  as  to  be  a  complete  organic  whole.  Here 
are  dramas  beginning  with  the  masterpieces  of 
Sophocles,  Euripides,  and  Aristophanes,  and 
coming  down  through  Rome,  the  Middle  Ages, 
Italy,  Spain,  France,  Germany,  England,  and 
the  United  States  to  the  present  day.  Even 
Holland,  the  Scandinavian  lands,  and  Portugal 
are  represented.  Lope  de  Vega,  who  has  gone 
down  to  fame  as  the  most  prolific  playwright 
the  world  ever  had,  but  who  is  as  forgotten  to- 
day as  the  builders  of  the  Pyramids,  has  a  little 
place  on  the  shelves  of  Miss  Allen's  book-room. 
Along  other  lines  are  to  be  found  the  lives  of 
actors  and  managers;  the  memoirs  of  people 
connected  with  the  stage;  biographies  of  play- 
wrights; the  histories  of  costumes,  arms,  and 
armor;  and  treatises  upon  the  industries  and 
sub-industries  which  grow  out  of  the  theatre. 
Of  value  are  the  books  devoted  to  the  liter- 
ary aspect  of  histrionic  art.  Most  of  these 
are  by  French  and  German  authors,  who  have 
given  the  subject  far  more  consideration  than 
the  writers  of  our  own  race.  Foremost  among 
[141] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

these  is  SchlegePs  great  work  on  u  Dramatic 
Literature,"  and  after  him  come  the  lesser 
lights  who  have  made  studies  upon  topics  con- 
nected with  the  profession. 

u  For  my  own  satisfaction,"  said  Miss  Allen, 
u  I  have  endeavored  to  have  my  books  repre- 
sent the  stage  as  an  entity.  When  you  are 
studying  some  delightful  little  comedy  by  Mo- 
liere,  you  are  apt  to  run  across  a  passage  or  a 
word  which  is  a  stumbling-block,  and  involves, 
it  may  be,  reference,  or,  worse  still,  considerable 
research.  It  occurred  to  me,  when  but  a  tyro 
in  these  matters,  that  I  ought  to  have  conven- 
iently at  hand  the  books  which  explain  the 
knotty  points  in  the  other  books.  We  have 
complete  glossaries  of  Shakespeare,  and  any 
number  of  essays  upon  his  similes,  historical 
incidents,  the  origins  of  his  plots,  the  construc- 
tion of  his  poetry,  and  his  own  personality ;  but 
we  have  almost  no  literature  upon  his  brilliant 
associates  of  the  Elizabethan  era,  and  compar- 
atively little  upon  playwrights  and  plays  down 
to  the  present  time. 

( (  In  French  and  German  the  hiatus  is  not  so 

marked.    Their  learned  authors  have  commented 

upon  every  name  and   event  of  importance  in 

the  history  of  the  drama  of  both  lands,  so  that 

[142] 


Viola  Allen 

it  is  possible  to  obtain  complete  knowledge  by 
consulting  a  limited  number  of  well-assorted 
books.  My  own  library  is  an  attempt  to  do 
this  on  a  larger  scale  than  is  usually  undertaken. 
I  have  had  the  kind  assistance  of  my  father, 
or  rather,  I  might  say,  he  has  had  my  assist- 
ance, and  between  us  we  have  brought  into 
being  a  collection  of  which  we  are,  I  think 
justly,  proud.  Of  late  years  there  has  been 
quite  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  players  to  get 
up  libraries  of  this  sort;  formerly,  I  believe, 
the  practice  was  confined  to  very  few;  but  the 
stage  has  risen  to  higher  standards,  and  the  de- 
mand for  special  kinds  of  literary  or  intellectual 
culture  renders  books  of  this  sort  indispensable. 
There  must  be  several  hundreds  of  such  libraries 
to-day  in  the  country,  and  there  is  a  friendly 
rivalry  among  their  owners." 

During  her  vacations  Miss  Allen  has  trav- 
elled extensively,  and  has  been  enabled  to  gather 
countless  oddities  for  her  home.  A  glimpse 
about  her  rooms  indicates  the  lands  where  she 
has  been.  Here  is  a  bit  of  Irish  point-lace, 
and  there  an  odd  piece  of  cairngorm  stone  from 
the  Scotch  Highlands.  A  noble  specimen  of 
English  pottery  confronts  some  wondrous  metal- 
work  from  the  Flemish  guilds  of  Belgium;  an 
[i43] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

exquisitely  carved  table  from  Paris,  which  might 
have  been  made  by  Charpentier,  is  vis-a-vis 
with  an  inlaid  octagonal  stool  which  may  have 
once  ornamented  a  mosque  in  Cairo.  Swiss 
carvings,  plain  and  simple,  contrast  strongly 
with  cobweb-like  filagree  work  of  Italy,  and 
glorious  German  pottery  seems  related  in  some 
invisible  manner  to  dainty  little  figurines  from 
Calabria  and  Sicily.  This  composite  wealth 
shows  that  the  owner  has  three  distinct  natures 
— the  professional,  the  intellectual,  and  the  artis- 
tic— and  this,  in  fact,  is  a  summary  of  her  career 
upon  the  boards.  It  has  been  marked  by  high 
professional  capacity,  rare  mentality,  and  an 
aesthetic  nature  which  has  poetized  all  of  the 
parts  which  have  made  her  famous.  Miss 
Allen's  public  life  has  been  more  fortunate  than 
that  of  many  or  most  of  her  colleagues.  Born 
in  Alabama,  she  went  to  Boston,  Massachusetts, 
when  a  mere  child,  and  received  her  education 
in  that  city,  Toronto,  and  New  York.  She 
was  a  good  student,  and  stood  well  in  all  of  her 
classes.  From  her  father,  C.  Leslie  Allen, 
she  inherited  a  strong  physique,  a  rich  and 
powerful  voice,  and  a  natural  aptitude  for  act- 
ing. She  was  but  fifteen  when  she  made  her  de- 
but as  Esmeralda  at  the  Madison  Square  Theatre. 
[i44] 


Viola  Allen 

Probably  no  actress  in  the  country  began 
her  stage  work  in  so  summary  a  fashion,  start- 
ing with  a  leading  part  in  a  first-class  company 
at  the  age  of  fifteen,  without  having  had  any 
preliminary  experience  or  training.  She  did  so 
well  that  John  McCullough,  the  tragedian,  who 
saw  her  in  her  first  part,  engaged  her  to  be- 
come a  member  of  his  organization.  Here  she 
quickly  rose  to  be  his  leading  lady,  playing 
Virginia,  Desdemona,  Cordelia,  Parthenia,  and 
other  standard  parts.  Her  next  engagement 
of  note  was  when  she  appeared  with  Tomaso 
Salvini.  Following  this,  she  joined  the  Boston 
Museum,  where  she  created  or  played  a  number 
of  important  roles.  All  roads  lead  to  New 
York,  and  Miss  Allen  went  from  the  Massa- 
chusetts metropolis  to  the  Empire  Theatre  on 
Broadway.  Here  she  soon  became  a  favorite 
in  Gotham.  Her  chief  triumphs  were  in 
"  Liberty  Hall,"  "  Sowing  the  Wind,"  H  The 
Masqueraders,"  u  Michael  and  his  Lost  An- 
gel," "  John  a'  Dreams,"  and  "  Under  the 
Red  Robe."  Three  years  ago  she  became  a 
star  and  travelled  the  country  with  u  The  Chris- 
tian," in  which  play  she  reaped  a  rich  reward, 
professional  and  financial.  In  1901  she  ap- 
peared in  the  romantic  drama  u  In  the  Palace 
10  [  145  3 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

of  the  King,"  in  which  she  has  surpassed  all 
her  former  triumphs. 

Miss  Allen's  personal  appearance  is  hard  to 
describe.  It  varies  with  the  moods  of  her  soul 
and  with  the  eyes  of  the  spectator.  One  com- 
petent critic  refers  to  her  as  graceful  and  sylph- 
like, while  another  of  equal  standing  in  the 
world  of  letters  calls  her  finely  formed,  and 
most  impressive  upon  the  boards.  Both  these 
descriptions,  though  contradictory,  are  true. 
Her  figure  is  of  that  rare  type  which  is  so  sym- 
metric that  with  old-fashioned  drapery  she  seems 
very  slender;  but  when  attired  as  in  the  simple 
Manx  costume  of  Glory  §)uayle,  she  appears  the 
possessor  of  a  superb  physique.  Her  face  is 
a  Greek  oval ;  her  features  half  classic  and  half 
Moorish.  The  upper  lip  is  rather  long,  like 
that  of  many  of  the  old  Greek  statues,  and  the 
space  between  the  eyelid  and  the  eyebrow  is 
a  trifle  larger  than  usual,  which,  according  to 
the  phrenologists  and  physiognomists,  indicates 
special  aptitude  for  language.  In  private  life 
her  face  is  expressive  of  refinement,  kindliness, 
and  intellectuality. 

Although  a  marvel  of  self-possession  upon 
the  stage,  when  away  from  the  footlights  she 
wears  an  expression  that  borders  on  timidity 
[146] 


Viola  Allen 

or  even  shyness.  The  same  contradiction  in 
qualities  marks  her  costume,  which  is  always 
rich  and  refined,  but  so  quiet  in  tone  and  un- 
accentuated  in  treatment  as  never  to  arouse 
comment.  In  social  intercourse  she  is  a  pleas- 
ant companion  and  a  good  listener,  a  rare  virtue 
among  professionals.  Her  tact  is  notable, 
while  even  more  characteristic  is  an  optimism 
which  seems  to  pervade  her  life.  She  sees  the 
best  side  of  things,  the  excellencies  of  a  play, 
the  talents  of  her  friends,  the  beauties  of  a  land- 
scape, the  fun  and  the  loveliness  of  life.  This 
optimism  is  receptive,  and  not  creative.  She  is 
thoughtful,  but  not  humorous;  poetic,  but  not 
witty.  The  spiritual  development  observable 
in  her  acting  makes  her  a  commanding  figure, 
and  she  is  far  better  in  depicting  strong  emo- 
tions and  deep  passions  than  in  voicing  persi- 
flage and  the  froth  of  a  society  play. 

Her  chief  recreation  is  travel.  "  I  think," 
she  said,  u  that  change  is  as  necessary  to  spir- 
itual as  to  physical  comfort.  After  seeing 
American  landscapes  and  skyscapes  for  eight 
months,  it  is  a  wonderful  joy  to  look  upon  the 
misty  atmosphere  of  Great  Britain  or  the  clear, 
and  even  brilliant,  effects  of  France.  The  ear 
finds  relief  in  listening  to  the  broad  vowels  of 
[i47] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

London,  the  nasals  of  France,  and  the  heavy 
consonants  of  Germany.  I  have  a  vague  im- 
pression that  our  nerves  somehow  or  other  can 
detect  intangible  electrical  differences  between 
various  countries.  There  are  more  people  in 
London  than  in  New  York,  but  there  is  a  cer- 
tain galvanic  intensity  in  the  latter  which  keeps 
a  person  forever  on  the  qui  vive.  On  the  other 
hand,  in  the  dikes  and  sleepy  farms  of  Hol- 
land there  seems  to  be  a  complete  absence  of 
this  magnetic  force,  so  that  the  visitor,  after  the 
novelty  wears  off,  is  forever  dreaming  of  bed- 
time." 

At  home  Miss  Allen  finds  her  chief  joy  in 
her  books  and  in  the  society  of  friends  of  kin- 
dred tastes.  She  prefers  informality  to  formal- 
ity, and  enjoys  a  novel  with  as  much  zest  as 
a  young  girl. 

u  I  enjoy  fiction,"  she  said,  u  and  find  in  it 
features  of  pleasure  which  do  not  appeal  to  the 
general  reader.  These  are  chiefly  the  dramatic 
possibilities  in  the  plot  and  treatment.  Nearly 
all  successful  novel  writers  possess  more  or  less 
dramatic  talent,  and  oftentimes  one  runs  across 
a  story  by  an  unknown  writer  whose  stage  po- 
tentialities are  magnificent.  Sometimes  I  fancy 
that  it  would  be  a  good  thing  for  literature  if 
[148] 


Viola  Allen 

authors  of  fiction,  in  developing  plots,  consulted 
professional  actors,  in  order  to  improve  the  qual- 
ity of  their  stories." 

In  her  home  life,  as  upon  the  stage,  she  ex- 
ercises wise  care  in  respect  to  her  health.  She 
is  exceedingly  regular  in  her  habits,  and  believes 
that  professional  success  must  be  based  upon 
physical  welfare. 


[149] 


Francis    Wilson 

At  the  Orchard 


XII 

Francis   Wilson 

At  the  Orchard 

WHEN  a  player  has  won  fame  by 
years  of  perennial  humor  upon  the 
boards,  and  when  his  quips  and 
ban  mots  have  become  part  of  the  general  stock 
of  fun  of  the  metropolis,  it  is  hard  to  conceive 
that  the  man  behind  the  mask  is  of  an  entirely 
opposite  type  from  that  of  the  mask  itself. 
And  yet  this  dualism  has  long  marked  the 
annals  of  histrionism.  One  of  the  great  fun- 
makers  of  the  English  stage  was  Grimaldi, 
who,  for  the  larger  part  of  his  life,  was  the 
victim  of  a  hopeless  melancholia. 

In  the  dressing-room  Mr.  Francis  Wilson, 
the  light-opera  star,  is  thoughtful,  serious, 
and  interested  in  everything  except  the  play 
which  he  is  to  make  a  living  reality  within  a 
minute  or  two.  His  conversation  is  bright, 
and  shows  him  to  be  a  man  of  affairs  as  well 
as  one  of  the  world,  and  only  here  and  there 
does  a  visitor  obtain  a  glimpse  of  other  and 
deeper  attributes.  While  he  is  making  up  it  is 
[i53] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

fascinating  to  watch  the  way  in  which  he  oblit- 
erates his  facial  characteristics  and  creates  arti- 
ficial ones.  When  he  begins  he  looks  more 
like  a  theologian  or  a  lawyer  than  a  Thespian. 
The  lines  of  his  face  are  clear,  the  expression 
is  that  which  comes  from  reading  and  study, 
and  beyond  this  there  is  a  look  in  the  eye  which 
indicates  a  larger  emotional  and  poetic  nature 
than  belongs  to  the  average  man.  The  lines 
vanish  with  the  paint  and  powder,  the  hare's 
foot  and  the  pencil  bring  out  new  expressions, 
and  the  wig  and  costume  complete  the  trans- 
formation of  the  Francis  Wilson  of  his  home 
and  intimate  friends  to  the  comical  Francis 
Wilson  known  to  the  theatre-goers  of  the 
land. 

When  the  curtain  falls  at  the  end  of  the  per- 
formance, he  is  quickly  in  his  dressing-room, 
and  shortly  afterwards  on  his  way  to  the  Grand 
Central  Depot  to  take  the  first  train  to  his  home 
in  New  Rochelle.  It  is  the  same  when  playing 
in  Brooklyn,  Jersey  City,  and  other  neighbor- 
ing places.  The  action  reveals  one  of  his 
tendencies,  that  of  domesticity.  He  is  not  a 
man  who  cares  to  cultivate  the  social  graces  at 
the  expense  of  his  own  home  life.  He  pre- 
fers the  atmosphere  of  his  library,  art  gallery, 
[i54] 


Francis  Wilson 

flowers,  and  friends  to  that  of  the  clubs  and 
hotels,  which  are  only  too  happy  to  welcome 
him. 

Why  the  home  should  exert  so  strong  an  in- 
fluence is  easily  understood  upon  making  a  visit 
to  his  residence.  It  is  not  far  from  Long  Island 
Sound,  and  the  salt  breeze  of  that  great  arm  of 
the  sea  comes  across  farms  and  meadows,  bring- 
ing with  it  life  and  invigoration.  At  the  station 
you  are  met  by  a  neat  vehicle  drawn  by  well- 
kept  steeds,  who  carry  you  in  quick  time  to 
M  The  Orchard,"  as  the  place  is  quaintly 
styled.  It  is  a  short  drive,  and  soon  you  are 
at  your  destination.  The  house,  a  large,  three- 
storied  structure,  stands  back  a  short  way  from 
the  avenue,  and  is  surrounded  by  neatly  trimmed 
lawns  and  attractive  flower  beds.  A  broad 
piazza  runs  around  three  sides  of  the  house, 
and  affords  a  delightful  resting-place  on  summer 
afternoons  and  evenings.  There  are  enough 
trees  to  add  beauty  to  the  landscape  and  to 
throw  bars  of  shade  across  the  lawn  and  into 
the  doors  and  windows  of  the  place. 

The  owner  meets  you  at  the  door.      He  is 

a  trifle  over  medium  size,  slender,  but  strongly 

built,  his  appearance  being  that  of  a  man  in 

the  full  possession  of  his  physical  strength  and 

[i55] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

vitality.  He  is  dressed  in  that  easy  and  debon- 
air manner  which  marks  the  artist,  poet,  and 
musician.  He  extends  a  hearty  welcome  and 
leads  you  into  his  home.  You  enter  a  wide 
hall,  from  which  a  massive  stairway  leads  to 
the  upper  part  of  the  house,  and  are  impressed 
at  once  by  the  many  noble  canvases  which  meet 
the  eye  in  every  direction.  There  has  been  no 
attempt  at  segregation  or  to  confine  the  paint- 
ings to  a  so-called  gallery.  On  the  contrary, 
they  are  distributed  well  through  all  parts  of 
the  house.  They  are  so  numerous  that  they 
serve  to  furnish  every  corridor  and  apartment, 
and  make  the  establishment  seem  more  like  an 
ancient  mansion  of  the  nobility  of  Europe  than 
like  the  country  seat  of  a  simple  citizen  in  this 
country.  All  kinds  of  topics  are  represented, 
and  many  schools  of  art.  They  have  been 
selected  with  wisdom,  and  in  nearly  every  in- 
stance are  of  great  value.  Some  are  from  the 
great  masters,  and  have  been  photographed  and 
photograved,  so  that  they  seem  like  old  friends 
to  the  visitor.  Among  them  are  a  superb  land- 
scape by  Corot;  a  brilliant  composition  by 
Troyon;  admirable  tableaux  by  Van  Horn,  Van 
Marcke,  Thaulow,  Delpy,  Cazin,  Schreyer, 
Monchablon,  and  Ziem. 

[i56] 


Francis  Wilson 

<c  I  have  always  had  a  penchant  for  paint- 
ings," said  Mr.  Wilson,  u  probably  because  I 
cannot  paint  myself.  You  know  that  odd  law 
of  human  nature  which  prompts  every  child  to 
want  the  moon.  These  pictures  come  by  de- 
grees to  mean  more  than  their  colors,  lines,  and 
the  scenes  they  portray.  By  degrees  they  be- 
come symbols  of  the  men  who  painted  them. 
Nearly  every  one  of  the  artists  had  a  life  which 
was  romantic  or  dramatic,  and  I  often  fancy 
that  much  of  the  poetry  on  the  canvas  was 
transferred  there  from  their  own  selves.  I 
never  look  at  my  Corot  without  thinking  of  the 
long  struggle  which  the  great  color-poet  had 
with  adversity.  It  does  seem  inequitable  when 
you  read  of  enormous  sums  paid  for  his  master- 
pieces to-day  to  think  that  for  years  he  was 
compelled  to  sacrifice  his  work  for  a  mere  song. 
Worse  still,  there  were  times  when  he  could 
not  dispose  of  it  at  all.  He  was  a  man  con- 
secrated to  his  art,  and  he  had  the  courage  of 
sticking  to  his  convictions,  no  matter  whether 
the  francs  came  in  or  not.  At  any  time,  by 
painting  cheap  and  tawdry  themes,  he  could  un- 
doubtedly have  made  a  handsome  living ;  but  he 
never  yielded  to  the  temptation,  and  even  in 
the  most  desperate  moments  put  upon  his  can- 
[i57] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

vas  his  best  and  deepest  thought.  I  fancy  that 
the  symbolism  which  runs  through  all  his  work 
typifies  some  phase  of  his  own  soul.  He  cer- 
tainly had  a  strange  gift  for  reading  hidden  mean- 
ings in  nature's  face.  To  him  every  landscape 
spoke  in  no  uncertain  language.  One  day  it 
was  in  despair,  and  every  word  uttered  was  a 
sigh,  or  a  prayer  for  relief,  and  the  next  day  it 
fairly  bubbled  over  with  joy.  I  do  not  know 
how  he  did  it,  but  he  put  those  feelings  into  his 
pictures,  so  that  each  tells  its  own  story  to  the 
eye  of  the  spectator. 

"Troyon,  there,  had,  I  believe,  an  easier  and 
happier  life.  This  was  but  natural,  because 
he  ran  to  subjects  which  appealed  more  quickly 
to  the  public  heart;  and  there's  that  charming 
Franco-German,  Adolf  Schreyer,  who  lived 
half  the  time  near  Frankfort-on-the-Main  and 
the  other  half  in  Paris,  and  yet  whose  best  work 
is  of  neither  France  nor  Germany,  but  of  the 
hot  lands  of  the  south.  His  horses  are  those 
which  belong  to  the  desert  and  are  ridden  by 
wild  Bedouins.  He  loved  the  color  of  the 
tropics,  and  reproduced  it  with  a  lavish  hand. 
The  veriest  tyro  pauses  before  one  of  his  com- 
positions on  account  of  its  chromatic  brilliancy, 
while  the  man  who  has  travelled  nods  approval 
[158] 


Francis  Wilson 

as  he  recalls  originals  in  Constantinople  or 
Cairo,  Venice  or  Tangier,  Algiers  or  Jeddah. 

n  There  is  Cazin,  who  might  have  become 
one  of  the  religious  painters  of  the  world.  Any 
one  who  has  seen  his  c  Flight  into  Egypt,'  or 
even  copies  or  photographs  of  it,  will  remember 
his  singular  success  in  imparting  a  devotional 
atmosphere  to  that  great  tableau.  If  this  had 
been  applied  to  a  series  of  compositions,  they 
would  have  been  copied  ad  infinitum,  and  would 
have  placed  him  on  a  par  with  the  old  masters 
of  religious  art. 

u  But  which  of  all  these  canvases  do  you 
think  is  my  favorite  ?  It  is  yonder  in  the  hall, 
1  The  King  of  the  Forest,'  by  Joseph  Jefferson. 
His  extraordinary  dramatic  genius  has  blinded 
the  world  somewhat  to  his  other  rare  talents. 
Sometimes  I  have  half  wished  that  he  had  con- 
fined himself  to  pictorial  art.  No  one  who 
ever  touched  a  brush  has  a  deeper  love  for  na- 
ture and  the  children  of  the  wilderness  than  he. 
When  he  paints  a  forest  scene,  it  is  not  only  the 
forest  which  you  know,  and  through  which  you 
have  wandered,  but  somehow  or  other  he  has 
put  into  it  a  feeling  or  a  fact  which  stirs  your 
pulses  without  your  being  able  to  know  why. 
It  seems  an  enchanted  wood  out  of  whose  leafy 
[159] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

coverts  may  float  a  laughing  sprite  or  strut  a 
little  gnome  or  goblin  of  the  underworld." 

On  the  main  floor  there  are,  besides  the  hall, 
a  drawing-room,  music-room,  salon,  dining- 
room,  and  morning-room.  The  color  scheme 
of  most  of  these  is  a  combination  of  green,  gold, 
and  old  rose,  the  proportions  in  each  differing 
slightly  from  those  in  the  others,  and  in  this  wise 
giving  a  variety  to  the  effect,  which  is  very  pleas- 
ing to  the  eye.  The  general  tone  of  the  furnish- 
ing is  the  middle  part  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
substantial,  rich,  and  comfortable.  Chairs  up- 
holstered in  tapestry,  massive  pedestals  support- 
ing busts  and  statuary,  neatly  designed  cabinets, 
old-fashioned  couches,  and  cosey  window-seats 
make  a  very  inviting  interior.  In  brilliant  con- 
trast with  these  is  a  glass  and  gold  screen  repre- 
senting one  of  the  newer  schools  of  decorative 
art.  The  effect  is  very  enjoyable}  as  it  helps 
to  display  the  sterling  worth  of  old-time  decora- 
tion and  construction.  In  the  music-room  a 
piano,  numerous  musical  publications,  and  many 
books  show  where  much  of  the  comedian's  time 
is  spent.  This  room  has  heard  the  melodies, 
wit,  and  humor  of  the  many  operas — light, 
comic,  and  bouffe — in  which  Mr.  Wilson  has 
won  fame.  It  has  seen  the  little  army  of  bright 
[160] 


Francis  Wilson 

men  and  women  who  constitute  his  friends,  for 
no  man  in  the  profession  has  more  of  the  artist- 
bohemian  in  his  nature  than  he.  He  does  not 
belong  to  the  lower  strata  of  Bohemia,  which 
care  chiefly  for  the  pleasures  of  the  board  and 
the  bowl ;  but  of  the  higher,  which  are  devoted 
to  art  and  music,  poetry  and  fancy,  wit  and 
humor,  drama  and  travel. 

His  tastes  in  such  matters  are  already  re- 
corded in  the  memoirs  and  writings  of  such 
bright  minds  as  Eugene  Field,  Bill  Nye,  James 
Whitcomb  Riley,  and  Robert  Louis  Stevenson. 
With  them  he  has  spent  hours  and  even  days 
of  the  happiest  laughter  and  the  merriest  con- 
versation. Of  the  many  clever  intellects  whom 
he  has  known,  Eugene  Field,  the  inimitable,  he 
cared  for  the  most.  He  expresses  his  feelings 
in  the  characteristic  remark: 

u  Of  all  the  books  in  my  library  those  I  read 
the  most  are  by  William  Shakespeare  and  Eu- 
gene Field." 

The  dining-room  would  receive  the  praise  of 
a  prince  of  Bohemia.  The  coloring  is  warm 
and  hospitable;  and  around  the  walls,  not  far 
from  the  ceiling,  runs  a  strong  shelf  laden  down 
with  ceramic  art.  The  pieces  express  not  dif- 
ferent styles  of  pottery  nor  glyptic  design,  but 
ii  [  161 J 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

associations  with  personal  friends  or  with  the 
great  of  old.  At  one  point  is  a  plate  from  the 
home  of  Robert  Louis  Stevenson  in  Samoa,  at 
another  point  are  a  cup  and  saucer  presented  to 
him  by  Eugene  Field.  All  sorts  of  steins,  am- 
phorae, cups,  mugs,  tankards,  goblets,  tumblers, 
and  chalices  represent  past  festivities  and  absent 
friends.  u  Any  one  knowing  the  history  of 
those  pieces,"  said  Mr.  Wilson,  u  would  be 
looking  at  a  very  large  and  attractive  picture 
gallery." 

The  furniture  in  this  room  is  coveted  by 
every  Shakespearian  club  in  the  world.  If  it  is 
ever  stolen,  it  will  be  found  in  the  possession 
of  some  worshipper  of  the  immortal  bard  of 
Avon,  because  it  was  made  from  the  discarded 
pews  of  the  little  church  in  which  Shakespeare 
is  buried.  Wilson  secured  it  by  happy  acci- 
dent, and  regards  it  as  the  greatest  treasure  of 
the  numberless  ones  in  his  home.  They  must 
have  built  good  pews  in  the  old  days,  for  the 
wood  is  as  sound  and  handsome  as  if  it  had 
been  hewn  but  last  year.  The  centuries  have 
simply  deepened  the  coloring  matter  in  the  cells 
and  increased  the  strength  of  the  lines  which 
compose  the  grain. 

c '  How  old  the  pews  were  I  know  not, ' '  said 
[162] 


Francis  Wilson 

Mr.  Wilson.  c<  That  they  were  aged  is  a  fact, 
their  very  appearance  indicating  the  long  flight 
of  time  which  had  passed  over  them.  I  like  to 
believe  that  they  were  in  the  church  before  the 
great  dramatist  passed  away,  and  that,  when  he 
came  to  divine  worship  on  Sunday,  he  sat  upon 
the  seat  of  yonder  armchair;  and  that,  when  the 
clergyman  was  very  dull,  he  leaned  upon  the 
edge  of  that  bench,  which  was  then  the  top  of 
the  pew  in  front  of  him;  or  upon  the  back  of 
that  small  chair,  which  was  then  the  back  of  the 
pew  where  he  was  nodding.  If  the  spirits 
of  the  dead  are  ever  attracted  by  the  furniture 
which  they  used  when  living,  it  is  very  prob- 
able that  Shakespeare  has  used  all  the  chairs  in 
this  room,  and  has  chuckled  heartily  over  the 
descendants  of  his  race  spouting  his  lines  in  the 
land  beyond  the  seas." 

On  the  second  floor  are  the  sleeping  apart- 
ments, dressing-rooms,  and  a  remarkably  large 
library.  It  is  particularly  rich  in  works  belong- 
ing or  referring  to  the  Elizabethan  period,  as 
well  as  in  volumes  pertaining  to  art  and  the 
stage.  Poetry,  wit,  and  humor  are  well  repre- 
sented ;  while  fiction,  especially  its  masterpieces, 
fill  many  of  the  shelves. 

11  My  library,"  said  the  owner,  "  is  merely 
[163] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

a  door  which  leads  from  the  present  into  the 
past;  from  here  to  anywhere  and  nowhere;  and 
from  the  realm  of  dollars,  cents,  and  trolley 
cars  into  the  kingdom  of  the  imagination.  Study 
is  all  very  well,  and  the  feeling  that  you  are 
improving  your  mind  usually  receives  a  conde- 
scending nod  of  approval  from  conscience;  but 
for  pure  delight,  commend  me  to  poetry,  espe- 
cially that  of  the  great  masters.  Like  sleep,  it 
c  knits  up  the  ravelled  sleeve  of  care.'  " 


[164] 


"Julia   Marlowe 

On  Hearth  and  Heath 


"Julia  Marlowe  at  Highmount. 


XIII 

Julia  Marlowe 

On  Hearth  and  Heath 

THOSE  who  have  studied  Miss  Julia 
Marlowe  in  a  series  of  plays  have  prob- 
ably formed  a  clear  conception  of  the 
woman  within  the  artist.  Her  strength  and 
vigor  betray  her  love  of  the  open  air  and  of 
gaining  power,  like  Antaeus,  by  touching  the 
earth.  Her  enunciation  of  English  and  her 
correct  use  of  foreign  phrases  indicate  the  lover 
of  literature  and  of  study.  The  kindliness,  and 
even  tenderness,  which  she  manifests  so  natu- 
rally in  many  of  her  roles  are  hints  of  philan- 
thropy and  hospitality  in  private  life. 

Such  a  conception  comes  very  close  to  the 
truth.  No  one  has  a  greater  love  for  nature  in 
the  wild  than  Miss  Marlowe.  Her  home  is  at 
Highmount,  Ulster  County,  New  York,  in  the 
district  known  the  world  over  as  the  Catskills. 
Here,  in  the  heart  of  that  country  which  is  still 
in  part  a  wilderness,  she  has  an  estate  of  nearly 
four  hundred  acres,  a  portion  of  which  has  been 
cleared  and  put  under  cultivation.  The  land 
[167] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

is  too  rocky  and  sterile  to  suit  the  agriculturist, 
but  for  the  health-seeker  and  the  nature-lover 
it  is  ideal.  In  the  cleared  portion  a  picturesque 
effect  is  produced  by  groves  and  driveways. 
The  rest  of  her  wide  possessions  is  wilder  even 
than  when  she  bought  them. 

It  is  broken  by  ravines,  crossed  by  brawling 
brooks  and  streams,  dotted  with  dark  pools 
where  the  trout  loves  to  hide,  and  at  places  so 
overgrown  with  shrubs,  saplings,  and  vines  as 
to  form  a  thick  jungle,  where  the  wild  birds 
nest,  and  where  at  times  the  timid  bear  makes 
his  home  in  the  winter  season.  With  rare  judg- 
ment the  owner  has  refused  to  desecrate  the 
place  by  so-called  improvement.  Bowlders  block 
the  forest  paths  and  form  masses  of  green  beauty, 
so  thickly  are  they  covered  with  lichens  and 
mosses.  Fallen  trees  are  allowed  to  remain  as 
they  fall,  adding  pathos  to  the  landscape,  and 
incidentally  forming  a  shelter  for  the  little  chil- 
dren of  the  woods.  Back  waters  are  left  un- 
drained,  so  that  the  fish  and  fowl  which  use  its 
vegetation  may  have  their  homes  and  food  sup- 
ply undisturbed.  The  woodman  does  not  pro- 
fane the  place  with  his  relentless  axe,  and  nature 
in  gratitude  covers  the  old  trees  with  winding 
sheets  of  gayly  colored  fungus,  and  fills  the  bare 
[168] 


Julia  Marlowe 

places  with  brightly  tinted  and  ever  changing 
undergrowth.  Under  these  auspices  the  estate 
makes  a  notable  open-air  gymnasium.  The 
pedestrian  or  sprinter  has  the  well-rolled  drive- 
ways for  his  daily  exercise.  The  cross-country 
runner  needs  all  his  strength  to  traverse  a  sec- 
tion cloven  by  ravines  and  broken  by  irregular 
masses  of  rock  and  fallen  trees.  The  health- 
seeker  can  lose  himself  in  the  thickets,  and  the 
idler  can  stumble  upon  a  thousand  spots  which 
are  like  the  glades  in  the  long-lost  Eden. 

To  this  place  Miss  Marlowe  goes  the  mo- 
ment her  season  closes,  and  here  remains  until 
autumn  raises  the  curtain  and  sends  the  call- 
boy  to  the  players. 

When  she  arrives  at  Highmount  her  life  is 
transformed.  The  actress  retires  after  mid- 
night; but  the  mistress  of  Highmount  goes  to 
bed  early,  and  is  up  in  time  to  welcome  the  sun 
as  he  comes  over  the  eastern  hills.  In  clear 
weather  she  walks  from  point  to  point,  so  that  in 
the  course  of  a  summer  she  visits  all  the  interest- 
ing spots  of  the  neighborhood.  When  her  blood 
needs  brisker  movement,  she  climbs  the  steep  hills 
and  wanders  through  the  woods.  Every  day  she 
takes  a  horseback  ride,  and  regularly  indulges 
in  golfing,  trout-fishing,  and  nature  study. 
[169] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Her  vacation  is  not  one  of  idleness.  To 
each  day  is  allotted  a  certain  amount  of  exer- 
cise, reading,  study,  and  work.  There  is  no 
set  programme  to  restrict  her  activities.  On 
fair  days  she  spends  all  possible  time  in  the 
open;  in  rainy  and  stormy  weather  she  keeps 
within  her  comfortable  home,  and  lets  the 
library  take  the  place  of  the  forest.  The  con- 
duct of  the  day  varies  also  with  her  guests, 
whose  name  is  legion.  While  the  place  is  a 
veritable  Liberty  Hall,  yet  the  element  of  per- 
sonal taste  largely  influences  the  actions  of  the 
inmates  as  a  whole.  When  the  visitors  are 
musicians,  the  house  is  full  of  melody;  when 
they  are  playwrights  and  dramatic  people,  it  is 
a  reading-room;  when  they  are  friends  tired 
of  the  city  and  eager  to  inhale  the  forest  air, 
the  house  is  deserted,  and  the  inmates  dispersed 
throughout  the  broad  domain. 

The  dwelling-place  is  new,  and  was  over  two 
years  in  construction.  It  is  a  handsome  Colo- 
nial structure  with  shady  and  generous  verandas, 
large  windows,  and  a  door  which  is  marked  with 
the  invisible  characters  of  hospitality.  It  is  sit- 
uated upon  very  high  ground,  practically  a  peak, 
and  from  every  side  it  commands  a  wonderful 
view  of  hill,  forest,  and  stream.  In  the  hot- 
[  170] 


Julia  Marlowe 

test  day  of  summer  it  is  cool;  and  when  New 
York  is  lying  in  the  glare  of  the  sun,  the  ve- 
randas and  halls  of  the  place  are  swept  by  refresh- 
ing breezes,  oftentimes  so  strong  as  to  require 
wraps  or  protection  from  the  chilling  influence. 
The  feature  of  the  interior  is  a  great  living- 
room,  or  hall,  which  is  fairly  baronial  in  its 
dimensions.  At  each  end  is  a  giant  fireplace 
which  will  accommodate  a  score  of  people  in 
front  of  the  andirons  and  crane. 

Above  the  fireplaces  are  mural  frescos  de- 
picting scenes  from  Miss  Marlowe's  favorite 
plays.  They  reach  from  one  chimney  to  the 
other,  and  afford  a  picturesque  record  of  her 
leading  triumphs.  Most  attractive  of  these  are 
scenes  from  "  Twelfth  Night,"  u  As  You  Like 
It,"  "  Cymbeline,"  "  Ingomar,"  and  "  When 
Knighthood  Was  in  Flower."  The  rival  of 
the  living-room  is  the  library.  It  is  a  treasure- 
house  of  printed  gems.  The  actress  is  more 
than  a  bibliophile;  she  is  partly  a  bookworm 
and  partly  an  enthusiast  in  bibliopegic  art.  Her 
books  indicate  the  variety  of  her  tastes.  They 
are  many,  probably  exceeding  five  thousand  in 
number.  They  range  from  the  latest  standard 
work  to  marvellous  bindings  of  the  last  century, 
unique  folios  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
[171] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

centuries,  and  missals,  black  letters,  and  illu- 
minated volumes  of  the  Middle  Ages. 

Judging  from  their  worn  appearance,  her 
favorite  books  are  those  of  Thoreau,  Walt  Whit- 
man, Stevenson,  Balzac,  Meredith,  Shakespeare, 
Keats,  and  Swinburne.  In  dramatic  literature 
her  collection  of  plays  is  very  large,  including 
nearly  every  standard  drama  in  English  and 
French.  Poetry,  fiction,  and  history  are  nobly 
represented,  and  to  the  student  an  enjoyable 
sight  is  several  hundred  authoritative  works  of 
reference.  Special  tastes  are  manifested  by 
works  on  heraldry,  histories  of  costumes,  books 
upon  book-making  and  illumination,  and  me- 
moirs of  famous  men,  times,  and  places.  Her 
favorite  novels  are  Balzac's  u  Lily  of  the  Val- 
ley," Meredith's  u  Diana  of  the  Crossways," 
and  Major's  u  When  Knighthood  Was  in 
Flower."  She  is  one  of  the  few  women  who 
take  delight  in  book-making,  and  in  gratifying 
this  taste  she  has  become  an  expert  worker  in 
vellum  and  illumination. 

Every  play  in  which  she  has  appeared  she 
has  converted  into  a  delicious  imitation  of  a  vol- 
ume of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  pages  are  of 
vellum,  ornamented  with  illustrated  and  decora- 
tive initial  letters,  and  with  a  binding  made  of 
[172] 


Julia  Marlowe 

rich  silk.  Her  latest  issue  is  a  copy  of  the 
drama,  "  When  Knighthood  Was  in  Flower." 
As  designed  by  her,  it  will  require  several  years 
to  finish.  Besides  the  lettering  and  initialling, 
it  is  to  be  embellished  with  special  illustrations 
and  martial  sketches.  There  are  to  be  vignettes 
of  all  the  characters,  while  those  which  are  his- 
torical will  be  drawn  from  a  gallery  of  contem- 
porary portraits  which  she  has  been  collecting 
ever  since  she  accepted  the  play,  over  a  year 
ago.  Among  these  historical  drawings  will  be 
portraits  of  Anne  Boleyn;  Jane  Seymour;  Henry 
VIII. ;  Thomas,  Cardinal  Wolsey ;  the  Duke 
of  Buckingham;  Francis  I.,  King  of  France; 
the  Due  de  Longueville;  and  Will  Sommers, 
the  Merry  Jester  to  King  Henry  VIII.  In  ad- 
dition will  be  memoranda  concerning  the  early 
years  of  the  reign  of  bluff  King  Hal,  so  that  the 
volume  when  completed  will  be  a  historical  pro- 
duction of  considerable  value.  So  profound  is 
her  book  enthusiasm,  that  she  spent  her  leisure 
time  one  summer  in  Germany,  taking  lessons  in 
book-binding  from  a  venerable  German  artist 
of  high  renown  in  that  craft.  She  cultivates  a 
love  for  fairy  tales  and  children's  stories.  This, 
she  claims,  is  an  attempt  to  offset  the  influence 
of  the  excessive  use  of  the  brain  in  serious,  emo- 
[i73] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

tional,  and  tragic  work  upon  the  boards.  Books 
of  jingles,  tales  of  magic,  animal  books,  and 
similar  bits  of  literature  give  her  endless  amuse- 
ment, and  form  an  important,  but  minor,  part 
of  her  library. 

(<  It  is  healthful,"  said  Miss  Marlowe,  "  to 
unbend  from  the  strain  of  mature  life  and  be- 
come a  child  again  for  a  moment.  The  child- 
like mind  is  a  corrective  of  any  of  the  evils 
which  may  arise  from  excessive  work  and  study. 
Children's  toys,  games,  and  books  call  into  play 
a  set  of  emotions  and  mental  qualities  which  are 
found  in  every  healthy  human  being,  and  which, 
when  exercised,  afford  a  satisfaction  and  relaxa- 
tion unobtainable  in  any  other  way.  The  zest 
which  dignified  merchants  and  old  professors 
display  at  a  game  of  football,  the  delight  which 
grandmothers  experience  in  witnessing  their 
children's  children  at  some  boyish  or  girlish 
sport,  the  pleasure  derived  from  such  writings 
as  the  i  Jungle-books  '  of  Kipling,  and  Lewis 
Carroll's  '  Alice  in  Wonderland,'  not  to  speak 
of  Dickens's  '  Child's  History  of  England,'  are 
illustrations  of  this  great  unwritten  law." 

So  essential  a  part  of  her  life  have  her  books 
become,  that,  when  in  the  fall  she  goes  upon  the 
road,  she  carries  with  her  a  travelling  library  of 
[i74] 


Julia  Marlowe 

two  hundred  volumes.  These  comprise  history, 
philosophy,  poetry,  antiquarianism,  essays,  art 
works,  and  fiction.  A  friend,  in  looking  over 
the  volumes  one  day,  commented  upon  the  ab- 
sence of  a  copy  of  Shakespeare.  Miss  Marlowe 
smiled  as  she  replied : 

"It  is  hardly  necessary  to  carry  his  plays, 
because  all  that  I  love  best  in  them  I  bear  in 
my  memory.  One  who  loves  the  writings  of 
the  master  poet  is  bound  to  incorporate  them 
into  her  own  existence,  so  that  they  almost  be- 
come part  and  parcel  of  herself." 

In  her  love  of  literary  work  she  has  devel- 
oped a  unique  form  of  a  reading  circle.  Each 
member  selects  the  book  he  or  she  desires,  and 
takes  possession  of  an  easy  chair  in  which  to 
enjoy  the  volume.  When  a  question  presents 
itself  to  any  reader,  it  is  read  aloud  to  the  as- 
sembled circle,  when  all  join  in  a  general  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject.  Where,  as  is  usually 
the  case,  the  circle  is  composed  of  people  with 
different  tastes,  the  topics  which  come  up  in 
this  haphazard  fashion  are  marked  by  extraor- 
dinary variety.  One,  for  example,  is  reading 
"  Don  Quixote,"  another  Emerson's  essays, 
a  third  Carlyle's  "Sartor  Resartus,"  a  fourth 
is  deep  in  "  Hypatia,"  and  a  fifth  in  Edwin 
[175] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes. 

Arnold's  poems  of  ancient  India.  A  question 
from  each  of  the  five  would  produce  a  morn- 
ing's discussion  covering  thirty  centuries  of 
human  progress  and  four  continents. 

Miss  Marlowe  is  a  lover  of  music,  and  de- 
votes a  half-hour  daily  to  vocal  exercises.  In  the 
summer  she  increases  this  figure  to  an  hour. 
She  is  a  good  pianist,  and  has  a  wide  and  very 
thorough  knowledge  of  music  as  an  art.  In 
her  tastes  she  is  classic  rather  than  popular. 
She  has  a  deep  aversion  to  ragtime,  coon  songs, 
and  other  forms  of  cheap  and  common  music, 
and  believes  that  compositions  of  this  class 
should  be  frowned  upon  by  all  lovers  of  art. 
So  strong  are  her  feelings  in  this  respect,  that, 
when  at  work  professionally,  she  insists  that 
the  incidental  music  afforded  by  the  orchestra 
of  the  theatre  where  she  is  engaged  shall  be 
confined  to  the  best  works  of  acknowledged 
masters.  She  is  not  at  all  narrow  in  respect  to 
the  quality  or  character  of  the  compositions. 
While  it  may  be  she  prefers  Beethoven,  Bach, 
Wagner,  Brahms,  RafF,  and  Crieg,  she  has  a 
warm  place  in  her  heart  for  Rossini,  Verdi, 
Rubinstein,  Paderewski,  Mattei,  Wallace,  and 
Mascagni.  In  her  circle  of  friends  are  many 
musicians  and  composers,  not  one  of  whom  has 
[176] 


Julia  Marlowe 

written  a  ragtime  composition.  It  may  be  de- 
clared, without  much  fear  of  being  in  error,  that 
if  one  of  them  should  produce  one  of  these 
specimens  of  discord,  it  would  probably  end 
all  affection  between  him  and  the  mistress  of 
Highmount. 

The  furnishing  and  decorating  of  the  house 
is  light  and  graceful,  and  in  national  character 
largely  French  and  partly  Italian.  In  her  Euro- 
pean travels  she  has  picked  up  curios  and  oddi- 
ties in  every  land,  and  has  accumulated  in  this 
way  a  large  collection  of  beautiful  creations. 
Oil  paintings  and  water  colors ;  china,  porcelain, 
and  pottery;  mediaeval  and  Colonial  furniture; 
bronzes,  marbles,  and  bric-a-brac ;  busts,  statu- 
ettes, and  figurines;  carvings  in  wood  and  cast- 
ings in  metal;  filagree  and  repousse  work;  and 
even  curios  from  the  Far  East  serve  to  brighten 
the  interior  of  her  home  and  impart  an  artistic 
atmosphere  to  all  its  chambers. 

Her  professional  life  is  conducted  upon  a  sys- 
tem which  is  almost  military  in  its  precision. 
About  eight  o'clock  she  has  finished  breakfast, 
gone  through  her  morning  mail,  and  attended 
to  answering  all  letters  of  importance.  She  re- 
ceives then  the  visits  of  costumers,  designers, 
artists,  and  other  people  connected  with  various 
12  [  i77  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes. 

phases  of  her  public  life.  She  then  walks  from 
her  city  home  to  the  theatre,  and  conducts  a 
rehearsal  lasting  usually  two  hours;  she  also 
advises  stage  managers,  stage  carpenters,  and 
stage  engineers  in  regard  to  scenery  and  prop- 
erties. At  twelve-thirty  she  returns  to  her 
home  for  luncheon.  At  one-thirty  she  goes 
back  to  the  theatre  and  has  a  second  rehearsal 
or  a  matinee.  At  half-past  five  she  takes  her 
daily  pastime,  which  consists  of  an  automobile 
ride  of  a  half-hour  or  an  hour,  at  the  highest 
speed  allowed  by  the  law.  At  half-past  six  she 
returns  home,  has  a  light  supper,  and  then  is 
off  again  to  the  playhouse.  Half-past  eleven 
sees  her  again  in  her  apartments,  where  she 
takes  a  light  supper,  usually  oatmeal  and  cream, 
and  then  follows  correspondence  and  dictation 
to  her  secretary.  It  is  generally  two  in  the 
morning  when  she  finally  retires,  often  having 
spent  eighteen  hours  in  work  so  hard  that  few 
men  could  stand  the  strain.  Miss  Marlowe  has 
made  a  brilliant  record  upon  the  stage.  Her 
successes  have  been  no  less  than  thirty-four  in 
number,  and  range  all  the  way  from  Sir  "Joseph 
Porter,  in  a  juvenile  cc Pinafore"  company,  to 
the  heroine  in  "  Romeo  and  Juliet." 

"My  experience,"   said  she,    "began  as  a 
[173] 


Julia  Marlowe 

sailor  boy  in  the  chorus  of  *  Pinafore.'  My 
voice  proved  so  powerful  that  I  was  promoted 
to  be  Sir  Joseph  Porter.  I  next  became  the  lit- 
tle boy  Heinricb  in  c  Rip  Van  Winkle. '  Here, 
as  my  acting  was  received  with  tumultuous 
laughter  by  the  audience,  I  was  led  to  believe 
that  I  was  the  star  of  the  piece,  and  it  was 
some  time  before  I  outgrew  my  delusion.  I 
then  entered  a  Shakespearian  company,  where 
I  was  Romeo's  page,  and  Maria  in  c  Twelfth 
Night.'  Even  in  those  days  I  loved  Shake- 
speare, and  my  favorite  dramas  were  c  Mac- 
beth,' c  Romeo  and  Juliet,'  and  c  Richard  III.' 
I  then  left  the  stage,  to  study  acting  profes- 
sionally, and  passed  three  years  in  earnest 
work.  I  had  a  very  hard  time  securing  rec- 
ognition, meeting  almost  numberless  rebuffs. 
At  last  I  managed  to  give  a  special  matinee  at 
the  Bijou  Theatre,  New  York,  in  October, 
1887.  Here,  to  my  delight,  I  was  favorably  re- 
ceived, and,  above  all,  I  was  highly  praised  by 
the  critics. 

"  Thereafter  I  had  a  week's  engagement  at 
the  Star  Theatre,  where  I  played  Parthenia, 
Juliet,  Viola,  and  Rosalind.  Since  that  time 
my  career  has  been  a  matter  of  general  knowl- 
edge. Of  my  thirty-four  roles,  eight  have  been 
[179] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

Shakespearian.  Nearly  all  of  my  plays  have 
pertained  to  the  past,  and  the  nearest  approach 
to  modern  costumes  that  I  have  worn  in  my 
various  parts  has  been  in  Barbara  Frietchie.  I 
hope,  at  some  not  distant  time,  again  to  present 
my  Shakespearian  roles  upon  a  larger  and  more 
finished  basis  than  I  have  yet  attempted." 

In  appearance  Miss  Marlowe  is  a  little  over 
medium  height,  finely  formed,  graceful  in  her 
movements,  and  pleasing  in  carriage.  Her  out- 
lines show  the  result  of  exercise  and  careful  liv- 
ing, being  indicative  of  strength  and  endurance. 
In  complexion  she  is  brunette,  her  features  are 
regular,  and  her  figure  symmetric  and  rather 
plump.  Her  face  is  fascinating  from  its  regu- 
larity, intellectuality,  strong  character,  and, 
above  all,  its  gentle  and  sympathetic  expression. 
It  is  this  which  makes  her  so  attractive  and 
impressive  when  acting  Shakespearian  heroines. 
Usually  the  possessors  of  powerful  voices  are 
deficient  in  what  may  be  termed  the  womanly 
qualities.  In  her  case  it  is  the  very  opposite. 
Her  voice,  though  strong,  has  a  rich,  musical 
quality  which  is  always  agreeable  to  the  ear. 

It  is  rare  for  a  young  woman  who  has  scarcely 
passed  her  third  decade  to  have  attained  so  high 
a  place  in  the  histrionic  world.  While  she 
[180] 


Julia  Marlowe 

owes  much  to  her  beauty,  intellect,  and  bodily 
health,  she  owes  more  to  that  which  is  the 
secret  of  all  success,  the  hardest  kind  of  hard 
work.  Beginning  when  a  mere  child,  her  life 
has  been  consecrated  to  the  art  of  which  she  is 
now  the  acknowledged  mistress.  Nothing  has 
been  allowed  to  interfere  with  her  growth  along 
histrionic  lines,  even  her  pleasures  having  been 
such  as  tended  to  increase  her  professional 
knowledge  or  to  augment  the  physical  forces 
which  at  times  are  so  heavily  drawn  upon  in 
the  performance  of  exhausting  roles.  If  she  is 
true  to  the  promise  of  the  present,  she  is  bound 
to  be  the  Ristori  or  Rachel  of  the  American 
stage. 

It  is  singular  how  those  who  have  won  lau- 
rels in  any  calling  desire  to  toil  and  win  fame 
in  other  fields.  When  asked  by  a  friend  con- 
cerning her  ambitions,  Miss  Marlowe  said, 
"  My  highest  aim  in  life  is  to  write  a  book, 
and  a  great  one." 


[181] 


Annie   Russell 
Her  Mansion  and  Bungalow 


Miss  Russell's  Art  Treasures. 


XIV 

Annie   Russell 
Her  Mansion  and  Bungalow 

WERE  the  poetic  dream  of  metem- 
psychosis a  practical  truth,  it 
would  be  easy  to  explain  Miss 
Annie  Russell  by  saying  that  in  past  lives  she  had 
lived  in  ancient  Italy,  Moorish  Spain,  France 
in  the  days  of  the  Empire,  and  Japan  within  the 
past  century,  and  that  each  of  these  lives  had 
left  a  distinguishing  mark  upon  her  character 
and  even  upon  her  appearance.  Small,  slender, 
graceful,  and  magnetic,  she  is  intensely  active 
of  mind,  quick  as  a  bird  in  her  movements, 
optimistic  as  an  Oriental,  and  yet  in  full  touch 
with  the  great  tides  of  the  life  of  to-day.  Her 
hair  is  yellowish  gold;  her  eyes  golden  hazel, 
suggesting  the  priceless  lacquers  of  Kioto, 
where  a  golden  coin  is  dimly  seen  through 
a  warm  umber  transparency;  her  complexion 
like  the  tint  and  texture  of  the  apple  blossoms 
in  the  early  springtide  of  Dai-Nippon. 

Her  homes — one  in  the  city,  on  West  Fifty- 
eighth  Street,  and  the  other  at  Pemaquid  Har- 
[185] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

bor,  on  the  Maine  coast — carry  out  the  impres- 
sions made  by  the  owner's  physical  and  mental 
organization.  The  city  mansion  is  a  substan- 
tial three-story  and  basement  brown-stcne  house. 
It  was  built  in  a  period  when  comfort  and  con- 
venience were  the  aims  of  the  builder.  Upon 
this  building  as  a  basis  the  owner  has  made  a 
home  which,  by  her  friends,  is  appropriately 
called  a  fairyland.  The  main  floor  may  be 
said  to  consist  of  an  anteroom,  hall,  and  salon. 
The  impression  it  makes  upon  the  visitor  is  that 
of  the  Orient.  No  matter  the  nationality  of 
the  furniture  or  the  period  of  any  particular  ob- 
ject, the  atmosphere  is  that  of  the  Far  East, 
where  the  higher  art  of  Japan  has  mingled  with 
that  of  its  mother-country  China. 

The  coloring  is  in  lotus  green  and  gold.  The 
former  tint  is  not  primary ;  it  does  not  run  to- 
ward light  uranium  nor  the  rich  olive  of  Italy. 
It  is  what  Hearne  has  well  called  ct  veiled 
green."  It  must  have  been  adopted  or  copied 
by  some  artist  who  saw  a  curtain  of  gray  lace 
thrown  over  a  bright  lawn  in  the  early  spring. 
What  little  gold  is  employed  seems  accentuation 
rather  than  coloring.  It  serves  to  neutralize 
the  shadows  produced  in  every  room  by  the  in- 
terference of  the  window  with  the  rest  of  the 
[186] 


Annie  Russell 

apartment.  In  full  accord  with  the  chromatic 
element  are  the  lamps  and  hangings  in  not  alone 
the  anteroom,  but  the  hall  and  salon  as  well. 
The  former  are  wonderful  creations  of  the  wood- 
carver  and  the  metalsmith.  Some  of  the  lamps 
came  from  the  Imperial  Palace  at  Peking  when 
it  was  captured  by  the  Allies  a  year  ago,  others 
are  part  of  the  u  loot"  of  the  Winter  Palace 
when  it  was  captured  by  the  English  and  French 
in  their  war  with  China;  while  the  rest  repre- 
sent commerce  and  peace,  and  not  carnage  and 
war.  All  of  them  have  belonged  to  the  palaces 
of  the  Middle  Kingdom,  Corea  or  the  Land 
of  the  Mikado.  They  have  thrown  their  rays 
upon  mandarins,  viceroys,  daimios,  warriors, 
and  sages.  Yet  they  seem  at  home  here,  sur- 
rounded by  the  color  and  draperies  with  which 
they  were  associated  in  the  past,  and,  above 
all,  when  they  serve  as  a  background  to  their 
mistress. 

The  hangings  are  of  Eastern  silk  which  in 
some  lights  looks  as  if  it  were  satin,  and  in 
others  like  velvet.  They  are  heavily  decorated, 
but  with  that  subtle  taste  peculiar  to  the  Ori- 
ental, which  makes  them  seem  natural,  no  mat- 
ter how  unnatural  they  may  be.  Here  are 
dragons  which  wink  at  you  and  convince  you 
[187] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

that  they  once  did  live,  in  spite  of  what  science 
may  say  upon  the  subject.  Intelligent  fishes 
seem  to  crawl  toward  you,  and  open  clumsy 
mouths,  as  if  beginning  a  happy  conversation. 
They  clearly  evidence  that  the  Japanese  poets 
were  right  in  ascribing  human  speech  and  intel- 
ligence to  the  scaly  children  of  the  sea.  Most 
graceful  of  all  are  the  storks  and  swallows, 
where  the  brown  artists  of  the  sunrise  have 
caught  the  kings  of  the  feathered  world  and 
transferred  them  to  their  cloth. 

u  I  have  a  great  love  for  these  Eastern  paint- 
ings and  embroideries,"  said  Miss  Russell. 
H  When  I  am  not  busy,  or  when  I  am  busy 
and  take  a  brief  recess,  I  enjoy  sitting  and 
studying  them.  I  have  a  half  feeling  that,  as 
the  romancers  of  the  Orient  declare,  the  dragon 
may  climb  down  from  the  curtain  where  he  is 
embroidered  and  make  a  social  call;  that  the 
fish  may  leap  from  the  hanging  and  go  up  stairs' 
to  try  a  swim  in  a  modern  bath;  or  that  the 
stork  may  spread  his  wings  and  dash  through 
the  window,  with  the  desire  to  take  a  spin 
through  the  air  among  the  trees  of  Central 
Park. 

u  There  is  one  dragon   in   particular  that  is 
my  favorite.      There  is  nothing  ferocious  about 
[188] 


Annie  Russell 

him.  You  know  at  a  glance  that  he  never  lived 
in  a  cave,  vomiting  fire  and  devouring  every 
good  knight  who  passed  by.  He  was,  on  the 
contrary,  a  good  dragon,  like  the  one  that 
guarded  Confucius  in  his  babyhood.  He  has 
big,  soft  eyes,  like  several  distinguished  dogs 
with  whom  I  am  on  friendly  terms.  I  never 
see  him  but  I  know  he  is  a  cousin  of  the  dragon 
that  was  painted  on  the  umbrella  of  a  very 
great  philosopher  who  flourished  in  long-gone 
ages.  On  one  occasion  the  wise  man  late  at 
night  was  suddenly  attacked  by  robbers.  He 
was  not  disconcerted  in  the  least.  He  merely 
raised  his  hand  and  pronounced  an  incantation, 
whereupon  the  dragon  climbed  down  from  the 
umbrella,  devoured  the  villains  in  a  single  bite, 
and  then,  returning  to  the  umbrella,  became 
merged  in  it  as  before.  That's  the  kind  of  a 
dragon  I  like.  I  should  not  be  at  all  surprised 
if  some  day  I  should  stumble  upon  the  magic 
words,  and  the  next  instant  have  the  clumsy 
creature  flopping  all  around  the  room." 

In  the  anteroom  much  of  the  furniture  is  of 
the  old  French  styles,  as  are  many  of  the  en- 
gravings upon  the  walls  and  the  books  in  the 
bookcases.  For  many  years  Miss  Russell  has 
made  a  special  study  of  the  history  of  the  French 
[189] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

stage,  during  which  she  has  accumulated  nu- 
merous gems  from  the  ancient  book  world.  Her 
volumes  begin  with  the  early  periods,  when  the 
plays  reflected  the  deadly  war  then  waging  be- 
tween Rome  and  Mecca,  and  which  left  traces 
in  the  miracle  plays  of  the  Middle  Ages  and 
the  Moro-Moro  spectacles  of  Spain,  the  West 
Indies,  and  the  Philippines,  and  in  the  marion- 
ette dramas  with  which  Italians  and  Provencals 
still  delight  themselves  to-day. 

"  It  is  difficult  to  tell  how  far  the  poets  and 
playwrights  of  the  Mediterranean  have  affected 
those  of  other  lands,"  said  Miss  Russell.  "  I 
took  up  the  study  of  the  French  and  Italian 
stage  to  round  out  my  knowledge  of  "Juliet  and 
other  Shakespearian  characters  belonging  to  the 
two  lands  in  question.  When  I  had  entered 
this  misty  land  of  romance,  I  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  tear  myself  away;  so  I  have  been  study- 
ing it  ever  since,  and  probably  shall  make  it  a 
favorite  mental  haunt  as  long  as  I  live.  It 
has  been  of  practical  benefit  as  well  as  of  great 
pleasure.  My  knowledge  of  the  Shakespearian 
dramas  has  been  largely  increased,  as  has  that 
of  English  poetry.  It  is  very  odd  to  see  how 
many  of  the  strongest  lines  and  brightest  figures 
of  English  lyric,  comic,  and  tragic  poets,  as 
[190] 


Annie  Russell 

well  as  playwrights,  have  been  quarried  from 
France  and  Italy.  In  many  cases  it  is  clear 
that  the  borrowing  has  been  direct;  but  in  most 
the  action  has  been  the  result  of  suggestion, 
imitation,  or  influence." 

In  the  roomy  hall  is  an  alcove  called  the 
Velasquez  alcove,  which  symbolizes  a  period 
of  her  life  spent  in  Spain.  She  was  in  the  land 
of  Don  Quixote  at  the  time  of  the  Velasquez 
Memorial,  and  secured  many  souvenirs  of  that 
great  master  of  the  brush,  in  addition  to  works 
of  art  representing  the  best  types  of  his  country. 
The  chairs  and  couches  are  like  those  found  in 
the  Escurial,  and,  still  farther  back,  in  the  Al- 
hambra  of  Boabdil  at  Granada.  They  are  very 
low,  comfortable,  and  appealing.  They  create 
a  desire  to  sit  down  and  listen  to  a  fairy  tale,  or 
to  a  song  with  an  accompaniment  on  a  guitar  or 
mandolin.  The  influence  of  Spain  must  have 
been  very  strong,  as  it  runs  into  nearly  every 
part  of  the  house.  Seville  chairs  and  Ma- 
donnas, tables  half  Spanish  and  half  Moorish, 
Spanish  and  Gotho-Spanish  laces,  Toledo  metal- 
work,  and  objects  in  Cordova  leather  suggest  the 
poetic  side  of  the  land  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella 
and  also  of  Weyler  and  Montojo. 

The  salon  brings  to  its  highest  development 
[191] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

the  Castilian,  old  French,  and  Oriental  elements 
seen  in  the  ether  parts  of  the  house.  The 
room  is  large,  attractive,  and  restful.  There  is 
a  piano  which  indicates  the  taste  of  its  owner, 
but  its  case  is  so  ancient  and  rich  that  it  seems 
to  have  come  down  from  some  long-forgotten 
period.  In  one  corner  is  a  cabinet  filled  with 
Romance  figurines,  in  which  those  of  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  origin  predominate  over  those 
from  Italy  and  Provence.  In  these  it  is  easy 
to  discern  the  mental  peculiarities  of  South- 
ern Europe.  The  little  figures  were  made  by 
artists  and  drawn  from  the  living  things  about 
them.  The  men  and  women,  boys  and  girls, 
soldiers  and  padres  were  copied  from  the  neigh- 
bors of  the  makers,  and  along  with  the  human 
figures  are  those  of  the  horses,  cows,  and  other 
animals  that  played  so  important  a  part  in  the 
village  life  of  those  lands.  A  huge,  old-fash- 
ioned fireplace  suggests  a  roaring  log  fire  on 
winter  nights,  while  the  mantel  over  it  is  laden 
down  with  beautiful  specimens  of  jugs  and  jars, 
urns  and  vases.  These  cover  the  mantel  and 
form  a  series  of  steps  upon  the  wall,  where  they 
are  supported  by  shelves  on  which  are  other 
bits  of  bric-a-brac. 

On  the  basement  floor  is  the  dining-room, 
[192] 


Annie  Russell 

where  the  half-Spanish,  half-Oriental  effect  is 
modified  by  several  influences.  Hanging  baskets 
full  of  growing  ferns  and  flowers,  jardinieres 
and  potted  plants,  give  a  springlike  feeling  to  the 
room;  while  a  massive  dining-table,  noble  side- 
board, and  a  fine  collection  of  old  silver  and  of 
English  art  pottery  bring  the  best  features  of 
our  modern  life  into  strong  contrast  with  the 
splendor  and  beauty  of  dying  Spain  and  dead 
China. 

The  boudoir  and  study  are  on  the  second  floor. 
Marvellous  landscape  screens  show  the  choicest 
bits  of  Japanese  scenery,  ranging  from  its  im- 
mortal mountain,  Fujiyama,  to  the  matchless 
temples  of  Nikko.  Upon  the  walls  are  silk 
panels  representing  symbolic  and  mythologic 
conceptions  of  the  Far  East,  while  below  these 
a  gold -tinted  burlap  serves  as  framework  to  the 
panels.  The  curtains  are  of  salmon  silk  em- 
bossed in  gold,  and  the  Occident  is  represented 
by  a  Louis  Quinze  desk  and  chairs,  several 
paintings  upon  copper,  and  a  number  of  noble 
Madonnas. 

The  country-seat   at  Pemaquid   Harbor  is  a 

closer  approach  to  the  Oriental  ideal  of  a  home 

than  the  house  in  the  city.      It  is  named  ( -  The 

Ledges,"  from  the  rough,  romantic  features  of 

13  [  193  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes. 

the  coast  line,  where  the  strata  of  the  earliest 
formations  constitute  the  rampart  which  the 
land  has  built  against  the  encroaching  sea.  The 
house  is  a  rambling  structure,  and  if  it  could 
have  a  thatched  roof,  it  would  be  a  typical 
bungalow.  The  ground  floor  is  devoted  to  liv- 
ing purposes,  and  the  second  floor  to  sleep. 
Bow-windows  look  out  upon  land  and  sea,  form- 
ing each  a  landscape  picture  of  rare  beauty. 
The  colorature  is  in  yellow  and  red.  The 
hangings  are  like  those  of  the  city  home,  as  are 
the  furniture  and  pictures.  In  the  library  may 
be  noted  a  preponderance  of  historical  and  philo- 
sophical works.  Miss  Russell  explains  the  dis- 
parity by  saying: 

11  In  the  city  I  must  keep  in  touch  with  the 
stage,  and  for  that  reason  I  like  my  studies  to 
run  along  lines  connected  more  or  less  with  the 
drama;  but  here,  during  my  vacations,  when 
I  want  to  change  all  my  habits  and  develop 
those  parts  of  my  nature  which  have  been  kept 
in  quiescence  during  the  season,  I  select  my 
reading  to  conform  to  these  desires.  I  enjoy 
a  little  fiction,  but  prefer  history  and  philoso- 
phy. The  mental  mood  produced  by  a  superb 
coast  like  that  of  Maine  is  more  or  less  thought- 
ful and  serious.      The  beauty  of  the  surround- 


Annie  Russell 

ings  is  made  up  of  features  each  one  of  which 
tells  eloquently  of  giant  forces  at  play  through 
inconceivably  long  periods,  and  of  the  slow, 
protracted  struggle  through  which  life  has  grown 
or  moved  from  the  far-off  Silurian  down  to  the 
present  post-Tertiary." 

Miss  Russell's  life  in  the  summer  is  sim- 
plicity embodied.  She  rides,  drives,  rows, 
swims,  sails,  walks,  reads,  and  studies.  Dur- 
ing this  time  she  declares  that  she  is  accumu- 
lating energy  and  building  up  nerve  and  muscle 
for  the  coming  season. 

Miss  Russell's  career  has  been  identified  with 
many  of  the  dramatic  successes  of  New  York 
City.  She  made  her  debut  at  the  age  of  ten, 
and  shortly  after  sang  as  Josephine  in  a  juve- 
nile u  Pinafore  "  company.  In  u  Esmeralda" 
she  won  her  first  great  triumph  and  established 
a  permanent  reputation.  In  this  play  she  ap- 
peared nearly  a  thousand  times.  After  this  she 
played  in  "  Hazel  Kirke,"  "  Moths,"  "  En- 
gaged," "  Broken  Hearts,"  "  Our  Society," 
"  Sealed  Instructions,"  "  Elaine,"  "  Captain 
Swift,"  "  Lethe,"  "  The  New  Woman," 
"The  Fatal  Card,"  "  Ambition,"  "  David 
Garrick, "  "  Sue, "  "  Catherine, "  "  Miss 
Hobbes,"  "The  Royal  Family,"  and  "  The 
[i95] 


Eminent  Actors  in  ^heir  Homes. 

Girl  and  the  Judge."  The  epigram  which 
best  expresses  her  work  was  coined  by  an  Eng- 
lish critic  who  called  her  the  ' c  Duse  of  Amer- 
ica." The  phrase  was  exceedingly  apropos, 
with  the  qualification  that  Miss  Russell  pos- 
sesses a  grace  and  pulchritude  unknown  to  the 
Italian  artist;  but  in  intensity,  magnetism,  sen- 
timent, force,  and  the  power  of  realizing  poetic 
and  dramatic  ideals,  the  two  great  stars  are 
of  the  same  magnitude.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
the  Shakespearian  drama  will,  as  is  rumored, 
experience  a  revival  ere  long  in  this  country. 
If  it  does,  the  mistress  of  u  The  Ledges" 
will  be  the  ideal  "Juliet  of  the  renaissance,  and 
probably  the  greatest  Juliet  the  world  has  yet 
known. 


[196] 


Amelia   Bingham 
And  Her  Many-sided  Home 


c§ 


3 


XV 

Amelia  Bingham 
And  Her  Many-sided  Home 

IT  is  seldom  that  nature  endeavors  to  equip 
individuals  for  more  than  one  purpose 
in  life,  and  frequently  in  doing  this  she 
strengthens  one  quality  at  the  expense  of  others. 
When,  therefore,  an  individuality  emerges  into 
view,  where  many  lines  of  talent  are  combined 
to  form  the  character,  the  fact  is  bound  to  oc- 
casion surprise  as  well  as  admiration.  Amelia 
Bingham  as  an  accomplished  and  versatile  artist 
would  deserve  more  than  passing  comment ;  but 
when  to  this  are  added  the  facts  that  she  is  a 
player  of  unusual  distinction  and  a  theatrical 
manager  as  well,  she  appeals  to  the  curiosity  of 
all.  A  glance  at  her  while  working  at  her  desk 
reveals  the  physical  characteristics  which  are 
indispensable  to  so  active  and  many-sided  a 
career.  A  well-knit  and  even  powerful  frame, 
finely  outlined  muscles,  and  the  unmistakable 
appearance  of  vitality  show  that  she  has  been 
provided  with  the  physical  foundation  on  which 
all  intellectual  performance  must  be  based. 
[199] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Her  face  is  almost  classic  in  its  details.  A 
wealth  of  loosely  arranged  golden  hair,  large 
blue  eyes,  well-accentuated  features,  a  firm  but 
affectionate  chin,  and  a  singularly  large  fore- 
head suggest  so  many  possibilities  that  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  assign  her  to  any  particular  profession. 
The  upper  half  of  her  face  is  that  of  the  artist, 
scholar,  or  business  woman;  the  lower  part 
indicates  the  social  and  domestic  virtues,  and 
might  cause  her  to  be  taken  for  a  society  leader 
or  a  hospitable  entertainer.  Only  the  mobility 
of  the  facial  muscles  and  the  ever-changing 
variety  of  her  expression  tell  the  story  of  her 
dramatic  genius.  Her  physiognomy  is  symbolic 
of  her  life.  By  inheritance  or  education  she 
has  always  had  a  deep  love  for  active  work  and 
an  invincible  antipathy  to  indolence.  Even 
when  engaged  in  the  pressing  duties  of  his- 
trionic art,  she  utilizes  her  leisure  moments  in 
carving  or  painting,  music  or  study,  in  accom- 
plishments or  business  negotiations. 

li  One  of  the  rules  of  my  life,"  she  said, 
( (  has  been  to  do  something  concrete  every  day. 
There  has  been  no  definite  purpose  in  this,  ex- 
cept the  utilization  of  my  time  and  the  improve- 
ment or  keeping  in  practice  of  what  gifts  I 
might  possess. 

T  200  ] 


Amelia  Bingham 

u  As  to  the  thing  done,  I  follow  the  humor 
of  the  moment  or  the  necessities  of  the  occa- 
sion. It  may  be  a  bit  of  embroidery,  the  out- 
lining of  a  water  color,  the  moulding  of  an  art 
panel,  the  making  of  a  bonnet,  the  memorizing 
of  a  pretty  poem,  or  the  jotting  of  the  results 
of  study,  reading,  or  observation;  but  it  must 
be  something.  When  this  is  done  I  feel  satis- 
fied, and  my  conscience  pats  me  on  the  back  in 
approval.  But  if  I  do  not,  my  internal  moni- 
tor snarls  at  me  until  the  next  day." 

Her  home  is  also  symbolized  in  her  face,  but 
in  that  broader  and  more  shadowy  way  which 
marks  the  relation  between  mind  and  matter. 
It  is  a  large  and  attractive  edifice  on  Thirty-first 
Street,  near  Fifth  Avenue.  It  belongs  to  what 
may  be  called  the  older  portion  of  that  cele- 
brated district,  and  gives  the  impression  of  sub- 
stantial comfort  and  conservative  habits,  unlike 
that  produced  by  the  more  pretentious  mansions 
farther  up  New  York's  great  thoroughfare,  to- 
ward Central  Park. 

The  former  neighborhood  seems  in  some 
vague  way  to  be  associated  with  the  culture  and 
charm  which  comes  from  the  long  possession 
of  wealth,  while  the  latter  appears  to  proclaim 
an  unexpected  prosperity  on  the  part  of  its  pos- 
[201] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

sessors.  The  interior  of  the  house  reflects  per- 
sonality at  every  point.  Residences  vary  in  this 
respect  infinitely.  Some  say  as  loudly  as  in 
words,  y  *  We  represent  the  mind  of  the  builder, 
and  the  inmates  are  only  hermit  crabs  who  have 
taken  advantage  of  the  shell  which  he  con- 
structed." At  the  very  opposite  extreme  are 
those  homes  in  which  there  is  so  much  visible 
thought  and  feeling  that  no  hint  of  the  architect 
appears,  and  even  the  restrictions  imposed  by 
the  necessities  of  city  life  are  concealed  in  the 
beauty  and  atmosphere  of  the  rooms.  To  this 
last  category  the  house  in  question  belongs;  in 
fact,  it  might  be  said  that  the  homes  of  nearly 
all  the  great  actors  come  more  or  less  within 
this  class.  No  matter  how  much  they  differ  in 
their  work,  education,  tastes,  and  triumphs,  all 
of  them  are  marked  by  a  strong  development  of 
the  art  instincts  and  an  unconquerable  desire 
to  make  their  environment  reflect  the  best 
elements  of  their  souls. 

On  entering  the  house,  the  first  feeling 
aroused  is  almost  that  experienced  in  visit- 
ing the  "  Thatched  House  Club  "  of  London. 
This  famous  organization  represents  men  who 
have  spent  most  of  their  lives  in  the  Far  East, 
and  who  have  endeavored  to  revive  in  the  Brit- 
[  202  ] 


Amelia  Bingham 

ish  capital  the  quaint  home  atmosphere  of  the 
Indias  and  China.  Mrs.  Bingham  has  intro- 
duced a  similar  effect  by  suggestion  rather 
than  by  imitation.  Here  is  a  bit  of  dark 
wood  which  might  have  belonged  to  a  man- 
darin's yamen  in  Canton,  there  some  bamboo 
work  that  first  saw  light  in  Osaka;  here  is  a 
tissue  which  says  Calcutta,  and  there  a  frag- 
ment of  hammered  brass  which  bears  the  invisi- 
ble label,  Benares.  To  obtain  an  effect  like 
this  demands  a  poet  rather  than  a  furnisher  and 
decorator.  Mental  pictures  are  not  produced 
with  brushes,  saws,  and  chisels,  but  with  the 
finer,  unseen  instruments  of  the  mind.  Closer 
scrutiny  shows  that  the  owner  is  realistic  rather 
than  impressionistic  in  her  art  nature.  The 
wood  is  carved,  and  the  carvings  are  not  the 
outline  work  so  common  to-day,  but  that  marked 
by  the  most  careful  and  finished  attention  to  de- 
tails. Where  a  bracket  is  needful  to  hold  a  bust 
or  piece  of  bric-a-brac,  it  is  decorated  in  turn 
to  the  highest  limit  permitted  by  the  character 
of  the  object  it  is  to  support,  as  well  as  by  the 
tone  of  its  entourage.  The  anteroom  would 
please  a  votary  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  It  is 
a  bold  attempt  to  reproduce  his  time  and  influ- 
ence in  a  New  York  residence  of  the  twentieth 
[203] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

century.  The  decorations  suggest  the  First 
Empire. 

The  lovely  lineaments  of  the  Empress  Joseph- 
ine are  above  the  door.  A  noble  cabinet  of 
rich  construction  fairly  overflows  with  relics, 
souvenirs,  and  trophies  of  the  greatest  warrior 
the  world  ever  produced.  Old-rose  hangings, 
mirrored  panels,  and  velvet-papered  walls  sug- 
gest the  palace  in  which  Napoleon  spent  his 
most  glorious  years.  On  the  same  floor  the 
votary  of  the  weed  will  find  a  veritable  Eden. 
This  is  a  Japanese  smoking-den  which  Mrs. 
Bingham  declares  to  be  the  sacred  temple  of 
which  her  husband,  Lloyd  Bingham,  is  high 
priest.  While  the  subjects  of  the  Mikado  do 
not  know  so  much  about  tobacco  as  the  Occi- 
dentals or  the  turbaned  Turk,  they  certainly 
have  a  far  better  notion  of  how  to  smoke  in 
absolute  comfort.  In  the  den  is  everything 
which  is  conducive  to  the  ease  and  cheerful- 
ness of  those  who  cross  its  threshold. 

A  feature  of  the  place  is  a  collection  of  Jap- 
anese masks  said  to  be  the  finest  in  the  United 
States.  The  mask  has  a  deeper  significance  in 
the  land  of  the  rising  sun  than  in  the  Western 
world.  As  with  us,  it  symbolizes  the  stage,  and 
beyond  this  it  is  employed  in  religious,  recre- 
[204] 


Amelia  Bingham 

ational,  and  social  functions.  Upon  it  artists 
put  their  best  work,  and  to  it  poets  give  their 
best  thought.  They  endeavor  to  typify  every 
emotion,  passion,  thought,  and  desire  in  these 
mimic  faces,  and  their  work  in  this  field  has 
been  a  wonder  for  centuries. 

In  passing  from  the  den  to  the  library,  the 
eye  encounters  numerous  delightful  surprises — 
electroliers  constructed  in  all  sorts  of  odd  forms ; 
tapestries,  ancient  and  modern;  paintings  and 
mezzotints ;  plates  of  repousse,  and  odd  carvings 
in  wood;  rich  ceramics  from  the  potteries  of 
Central  Europe  and  the  Far  East.  In  one 
of  the  halls  the  ceiling  is  made  into  a  great 
panorama  by  means  of  tapestry. 

The  library  is  the  very  heart  of  the  house, 
and  represents  best  of  all,  it  may  be,  the  tastes 
of  its  mistress  and  master.  The  books  are 
many,  wisely  chosen,  richly  bound,  and  con- 
venient to  the  reader.  They  are  there  for  use, 
and  not,  as  in  too  many  libraries,  on  exhibition 
as  works  of  art  never  to  be  handled.  A  notice- 
able feature  is  the  number  of  volumes  by  the 
masters  of  French  literature. 

li  I  have  always  had  a  great  love  for  French 
thought  ever  since  I  came  to  woman's  estate," 
said  the  actress.  u  There  is  a  certain  finish  to 
[205] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

its  literary  expression  which  surpasses  that  of 
all  other  languages.  In  addition  to  this,  it  rep- 
resents to  a  large  extent  the  leadership  which 
France  possessed  for  centuries  in  the  beaux  arts 
and  the  courtesies  of  life.  That  supremacy  has 
passed  away;  not  that  France  has  declined,  but 
that  the  other  nations  have  grown.  To-day  all 
the  world  is  on  higher  levels  than  ever  before, 
and  may  be  regarded  as  an  immense  plain;  but 
in  the  old  years  it  was  different.  France  was 
the  towering  mountain,  and  other  countries  were 
little  hills  beside  it.  I  take  delight  in  its 
poetry,  especially  that  of  the  lyric  singers  De 
Musset  and  Lamartine,  Gautier  and  Hugo, 
D'Arville  and  Nadeau,  Sully-Prudhomme  and 
Beaudelaire.  I  enjoy  the  French  painters,  and 
in  my  humble  way  I  try  to  follow  with  the 
brush  along  the  lines  which  they  have  made." 

Her  literary  tastes  are  pleasantly  illustrated 
by  curious  productions  by  needle,  pencil,  and 
branding  iron.  On  a  tissue  embroidered  in  silk 
is  a  verse  by  Hugo;  and  on  a  panel,  in  strong 
pyrographic  characters,  a  poem  by  De  Musset. 
On  paper  and  pasteboard  are  other  metrical  gems 
made  with  pen,  brush,  and  pencil,  so  that  every- 
where may  be  seen  the  visible  evidences  of  her 
regard.  Very  impressive  is  an  easel  and  port- 
[206] 


Amelia  Bingham 

folio-stand,  of  which  the  wooden  frame  is  dec- 
orated pyrographically  with  Ingalls's  famous 
lines  to  tl  Opportunity."  Clocks  and  statues, 
bronzes  and  paintings  give  an  artistic  tone  to 
the  literary  character  of  the  place,  and  an  elec- 
trolier made  to  imitate  a  great  branch  of  holly 
suggests  affection  and  good  cheer. 

The  dining-room  is  a  study  in  marquetry  and 
brilliant  Eastern  decorations.  The  ensemble  is 
exceedingly  attractive,  and  gives  an  air  of  gayety 
to  the  apartment,  which  invites  both  appetite 
and  digestion.  A  huge  silver-chest  serves  as  a 
memento  of  old-time  hospitality,  and  a  wonder- 
ful electrolier  over  the  dining-table  imitates  the 
umbrella  of  a  mandarin  of  the  first  rank.  The 
chief  ornaments  of  the  room  are  busts  and  paint- 
ings of  Charles  I.  and  Oliver  Cromwell. 

The  main  hall  is  the  art  gallery,  and  among 
the  treasures  are  many  capital  bits  of  her  own 
workmanship.  They  betray  a  keen  eye  for 
line  and  perspective,  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
color,  and  a  fair  conception  of  composition. 
One  feature  of  the  hall  attracts  the  visitor's  eye. 
It  is  a  hanging  of  rich  red  plush  on  which  are 
two  great  lions  in  gold  relief.  This  might  have 
been  the  drop  curtain  at  some  entertainment  in 
the  Tuileries,  or  the  wall  hanging  behind  the 
[207] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

throne,  at  the  reception  of  a  king.  It  seems 
strange  in  a  modern  New  York  hall,  and  looks 
as  if  it  was  suffering  from  loneliness,  desiring 
the  vast  apartments  of  a  royal  palace  and  the 
glitter  of  crowns  and  coronets.  The  drawing- 
room  is  a  pleasant  harmony  in  goblin  blue  and 
rose.  The  walls  are  resplendent  with  a  long 
array  of  choice  paintings,  which  is  broken  at 
intervals  by  pedestals  and  busts,  brackets  and 
statuary.  The  room  is  that  of  the  artist,  while 
the  library  is  that  of  the  scholar. 

Mrs.  Bingham's  life  is  as  busy  and  systematic 
as  that  of  a  soldier  in  war.  She  has  studied  the 
clock  so  as  to  utilize  every  moment. 

u  I  rise,"  she  said,  u  at  nine  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  begin  the  day  with  a  cold  bath.  I  find 
that  this  tones  me  up  better  than  warm  or  hot 
water,  and  brings  about  a  glow  which  makes 
me  thoroughly  alive.  I  then  dress,  and  at  the 
half  hour  I  take  a  light  breakfast.  During  the 
meal  I  read  the  morning  papers,  or,  to  be  ac- 
curate, I  glance  through  them,  and  at  ten  am 
ready  for  the  serious  labors  of  the  day.  Be- 
tween ten  and  eleven  I  attend  to  business  mat- 
ters and  read  my  mail.  I  then  dictate  replies 
to  my  secretary,  and  almost  invariably  am 
through  at  half-past  eleven.  An  hour  is  then 
[208] 


Amelia  Bingham 

given  to  business,  and  an  hour  to  reading  and 
study.  A  moderate  luncheon  at  half  after  one 
serves  to  renew  the  protoplasm  consumed  by 
the  morning's  work.  Between  two  and  three 
I  listen  to  the  reading  of  new  plays  and  the 
chat  of  friends.  At  three  o'clock  I  take  a 
nap,  especially  if  I  have  been  compelled  to 
listen  to  a  dull  play.  At  half  after  four  I  sign 
all  the  letters  that  have  been  prepared  by  my 
secretary,  and  then  I  leave  the  house  for  a  brisk 
walk  or  a  drive  through  the  Park.  At  five- 
thirty  we  dine  en  famille,  and  an  hour  later  I 
prepare  for  the  stage.  At  eleven-thirty  I  usually 
arrive  home  again,  and  take  a  very  light  sup- 
per. It  is  so  simple  that  you  will  laugh  when 
you  hear  what  it  is — only  crackers  and  milk. 
That,  somehow  or  other,  seems  to  suit  my  sys- 
tem better  than  any  other  food.  At  half-past 
twelve  or  thereabouts  I  am  in  the  arms  of 
Morpheus." 

Mrs.  Bingham's  career  has  been  much  easier 
than  that  of  many  of  her  profession.  She 
sprang  into  prominence  soon  after  making  her 
debut,  and  from  that  time  on  has  been  a  con- 
spicuous figure  upon  the  boards.  Among  the 
plays  with  which  she  has  been  identified  have 
been  "  Passion's  Slave,"  u  The  White  Horse 
14  [  209  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

Tavern,"  "  The  White  Heather,"  "  His  Ex- 
cellency the  Governor,"  u  The  Cuckoo," 
u  Two  Little  Vagrants,"  "  Hearts  are  Trumps," 
"  The  Climbers,"  and  "  Lady  Margaret." 

If  her  art  is  assigned  to  any  class,  she  must 
be  treated  as  an  exponent  of  high  comedy,  or, 
to  use  a  more  modern  phrase,  of  the  society 
drama.  She  excels  in  depicting  the  complex 
characters  of  the  present  day  rather  than  the 
simpler  and  more  primitive  types  of  antiquity. 
As  the  grande  dame  familiar  with  the  salons  of 
the  Old  and  New  World,  thoroughly  versed  in 
the  arts  and  culture  of  the  great  capitals,  she  is 
an  excellent  representative.  Equally  successful 
is  her  work  in  presenting  the  young  woman  of 
the  twentieth  century — aggressive,  brilliant, 
graceful,  self-willed,  and  yet  brimming  over 
with  the  tenderness  and  womanly  elements 
which  distinguish  her  sex. 


[210] 


Burr   Mcintosh 
In  Many  Roles 


XVI 

Burr  Mcintosh 

In  Many  Roles 

HAD  Burr  Mcintosh  lived  in  the  days 
of  Queen  Elizabeth,  he  would  have 
been  a  sea  rover,  like  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  and  the  other  deathless  heroes  of  that  era. 
Even  under  the  artificial  life  of  the  twentieth 
century  he  suggests  the  Berserkir  rather  than 
the  representative  of  the  modern  age.  Tall, 
broad,  powerful,  and  active ;  yellow-haired,  blue- 
eyed,  and  rosy-cheeked;  he  is  the  embodiment 
of  health  and  vigor.  His  life  has  been  in  keep- 
ing with  his  traits.  He  is  a  college  man,  with 
an  excellent  record  as  a  scholar,  a  newspaper 
man,  writer,  and  author,  and  an  all-round  ath- 
lete with  many  prizes  and  medals. 

During  the  war  with  Spain  he  was  one  of  the 
army  of  the  United  States  which  invaded  Cuba 
and  Porto  Rico,  and  since  the  closing  of  hos- 
tilities he  has  displayed  histrionic,  commercial, 
and  artistic  ability. 

It  may  be  questioned  if  any  member  of  the 
profession  has  had  so  varied  a  career.  To  those 
[213] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

who  know  him  well,  these  many  ventures  and 
adventures  are  simply  the  indicia  of  a  mercurial 
disposition  and  an  overflowing  vitality.  To 
them  he  is  a  natural  born  actor,  who,  however 
far  he  may  wander  from  the  stage,  in  the  search 
of  some  will-of-the-wisp,  is  bound  to  return  and 
assume  the  position  that  is  always  awaiting 
him.  Time  and  again  he  has  left  the  boards 
and  stayed  away  for  varying  periods,  but 
on  every  occasion  he  has  wearied  of  his 
new  pursuit  and  gone  back  to  his  favorite 
calling. 

The  home-life  of  such  a  type  is  not  so  do- 
mestic as  that  of  others  of  more  settled  tastes 
and  habits.  His  home  is  in  the  vicinity  of 
Thirtieth  Street  and  Broadway,  and  is  a  suite 
of  apartments  which  the  novelist  "Ouida" 
would  delight  in  depicting.  There  is  no  sys- 
tem and  no  regard  for  the  artistic  unities.  His 
belongings  express  his  moods,  and  therefore 
vary  in  every  conceivable  regard.  Here  is  an 
easy  chair  in  which  a  man  can  sleep  for  a  week, 
which  he  probably  picked  up  one  day  when 
weary  and  desiring  a  long  spell  of  repose.  Not 
far  from  it  is  a  camp-stool  of  the  portable  kind 
used  by  painters,  that  has  accompanied  him  in 
his  art  expeditions.  An  old-fashioned  Puritan 
[214] 


Burr  Mcintosh 

rocker  is,  perhaps,  a  memento  of  the  seaside, 
while  a  Hamlet  chair  suggests  some  Elizabethan 
part  to  which  the  owner  devoted  study. 

Covering  the  floor  a  Turkestan  prayer-rug, 
on  which  generations  of  Moslems  have  knelt  in 
adoration  of  the  Prophet,  lies  half  across  a  Span- 
ish floor-cloth  captured  in  one  of  the  battles  in 
eastern  Cuba.  Alongside  lies  a  bearskin  once 
belonging  to  a  poor  bruin  which  had  the  misfor- 
tune to  meet  the  actor  in  the  wilderness ;  and 
by  the  door  is  a  quaintly  woven  Japanese  foot- 
mat,  soft  and  pleasant  to  the  feet  of  the  visitor. 
The  walls  are  decorated,  but  as  incoherently  as 
the  rooms  are  furnished.  A  matchless  photo- 
graph of  Joseph  Jefferson  in  an  artistic  frame 
is  jostled  by  the  pen-and-ink  sketch  of  some 
famous  artist,  unframed,  and  merely  tacked 
upon  the  wall.  A  dainty  aquarelle  is  cheek  by 
jowl  with  a  queer  bit  of  Chinese  art,  where 
prismatic  colors  stand  out  in  strange  but  happy 
relief  upon  a  basis  of  snowy  rice  paper.  Here 
is  a  piece  of  repousse,  and  there  a  Venetian  fig- 
urine. At  one  point  are  trophies  of  the  chase, 
and  at  another,  relics  of  several  wars.  Well- 
dented  swords  speak  of  many  a  fencing  bout, 
and  boxing-gloves  indicate  experiments  in  ama- 
teur pugilism.  A  collection  of  pipes,  cigar  and 
[  215  1 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

cigarette-holders  show  that  the  weed  is  no 
stranger  in  the  place,  and  well-thumbed  vol- 
umes of  poetry  and  fiction  betray  a  love  of  the 
imagination  in  literature. 

Incomplete  drawings  and  half-finished  can- 
vases, studies  from  which  finished  pictures  have 
been  made,  and  views  of  famous  models  suggest 
that  the  owner  is  an  artist  and  the  centre  of  a 
circle  of  art  friends.  A  treasure-house  of  pho- 
tographs meets  the  eye.  Nearly  all  the  faces 
are  familiar  to  one  in  touch  with  the  daily  life 
of  New  York.  Actresses  and  singers,  states- 
men and  scientists,  society  leaders  and  famous 
belles,  poets  and  playwrights,  painters  and  sculp- 
tors are  among  the  subjects  of  the  pictures. 
Besides  these  are  portraits  of  women  distin- 
guished by  beauty,  grace,  and  symmetry.  This 
is  but  one  of  his  collections,  a  larger  one  being 
in  his  studio,  and  smaller  ones  decorating  other 
rooms  of  his  suite. 

In  the  living-rooms  have  been  numberless 
merry  parties.  The  owner  is  notable  for  his 
hospitality  and  for  his  power  of  entertaining; 
when  at  home,  his  place  is  a  Mecca  for  the  bright 
lights  of  the  metropolis.  Truthfulness  compels 
the  admission  that  he  is  not  over-domestic  in 
his  ways.  The  doors  of  every  club  are  open 
[216] 


Burr  Mcintosh 

to  him,  and  a  hundred  homes  reach  out  for  him 
as  a  welcome  guest. 

u  I  do  manage  to  escape,"  he  said,  c<  and 
then  I  try  to  spend  an  evening  with  myself.  I 
succeed  so  seldom,  that  frequently  I  am  com- 
pelled to  make  an  introduction  to  myself,  so 
that  the  Me  of  the  club  and  of  society  shall 
become  acquainted  with  the  Me  of  my  own 
domicile.  When  I  do  get  a  chance,  I  love  to 
sit  and  read  until  the  (  wee  sma'  hours,'  or  to 
study  along  some  line  in  which  I  am  interested. 
I  might  do  more  but  for  my  friends,  who  insist 
upon  seeing  me,  and  but  for  my  uncontrollable 
desire  to  travel  and  visit  strange  places.  If 
there  is  any  truth  in  the  doctrine  of  metemp- 
sychosis, I  was  once  a  Phoenician  sea-captain, 
then  an  Arab  trader,  then  an  English  buccaneer, 
and  finally  an  American  Indian.  In  my  next 
life  I  am  certain  that  I  shall  be  a  professional 
globe  trotter." 

The  way  the  actor  can  cover  country  when 
he  has  the  opportunity  is  a  marvel.  During 
the  Spanish  War  he  had  considerable  liberty, 
and  utilized  it  in  studying  the  eastern  provinces 
of  Cuba.  With  the  thermometer  above  the 
hundred  mark,  he  went  from  town  to  village, 
hamlet  to  swamp  and  wilderness*  taking  notes, 
[217] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

making  snapshots,  and  compiling  information 
which  proved  afterwards  of  the  greatest  value. 
Much  of  this  was  published  in  book  form  the 
following  year,  u  The  Little  I  Saw  of  Cuba," 
and  it  made  one  of  the  most  agreeable  brochures 
which  that  struggle  produced.  But  for  the 
fever  which  he  contracted  in  these  wanderings, 
it  is  believed  by  the  army  officers  who  saw  his 
work  that  he  would  have  traversed  every  part 
of  the  c  *  Pearl  of  the  Antilles, ' '  and  given  the 
world  a  first-class  exhaustive  description  of  its 
geography  and  topography. 

"  I  enjoyed  my  s'ay  in  Cuba,"  he  said, 
1 l  and  it  supplied  me  with  some  interesting  side- 
lights from  a  professional  point  of  view.  It 
taught  me  that  climate  affects  races  in  more 
ways  than  one.  The  minute  differences  pro- 
duced in  this  manner  often  extend  into  the  dra- 
matic or  histrionic  sphere.  The  Cubans,  of 
course,  are  Spaniards,  and  belong  theoretically 
to  the  Latin  race;  but  from  living  in  a  very 
different  climate,  and  from  having  become  more 
or  less  amalgamated  with  a  very  large  Ethiopian 
element,  they  have  grown  along  different  lines, 
and  present  an  appreciable  departure  from  their 
ancestral  type.  The  Spaniard  is  dignified ;  while 
the  Cuban,  especially  of  the  lower  classes,  is 
[218] 


Burr  Mcintosh 

impulsive  and  more  like  the  French.  The  Span- 
iard dances  rhythmically;  but  the  Cuban  with 
grace  and  abandon.  The  Spaniard  conducts 
life  upon  a  certain  slow  schedule,  in  which 
nature  and  the  open  air  play  small  parts;  while 
the  Cuban  loves  the  sunlight,  the  fields,  and  the 
breezes,  and  is  full  of  the  poetry  which  comes 
from  daily  contact  with  the  world  around  him. 

"  Spanish  dignity  is  not  conducive  to  histrionic 
success.  It  involves  the  suppression  of  emo- 
tions, and  a  self-control  that  is  opposed  to  the 
canons  of  the  drama.  With  the  Cubans  it  is 
the  contrary.  They  are  natural,  and  speak 
freely ;  they  act  with  their  facial  muscles,  their 
hands,  and  their  bodies  in  speech,  and  often 
remind  me  of  the  professional  improvisitores  of 
Italy  and  the  trained  actors  of  France.  Some 
of  these  days  a  clever  playwright  will  perceive 
the  value  of  the  opportunity,  and  produce  a 
composition  in  which  the  Cuban  character  will 
receive  recognition.  Such  a  play  will  be  a  rev- 
elation to  American  audiences,  and  if  to  it  are 
added  Cuban  dances  and  Cuban  music,  the 
effect  will  be  an  artistic  success  of  an  enduring 
kind." 

Mr.  Mcintosh  is  an  enthusiastic  votary  of 
athletic  games,  and  though  no  longer  in  the 
[219] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

same  superb  condition  that  he  was  when  a  triple 
champion  in  Princeton  University,  he  does  very 
creditable  work  upon  the  oval.  A  good  runner, 
jumper,  weight  and  hammer  thrower,  he  still 
can  hold  his  own  against  most  amateur  comers. 

It  was  this  training  which  made  him  so  effi- 
cient a  member  of  the  soldiery.  One  of  his 
favorite  amusements  is  getting  up  scrub  matches. 
Whenever  a  theatrical  baseball  nine,  or  a  trage- 
dian football  eleven,  or  a  comedian  barge  crew 
appear  upon  the  scene  in  the  neighborhood  of 
New  York,  it  is  fairly  certain  that  the  captain 
of  the  teams  or  the  stroke  oar  of  the  crew  will 
be  the  athletic  actor. 

"  Athletics  are  not  a  fad  with  me,"  said  Mr. 
Mcintosh.  u  I  cultivate  them  as  a  matter  of 
health  and  strength  as  well  as  enjoyment.  An 
actor's  life  is  artificial,  and,  what  is  worse  than 
that,  its  environment  is  more  or  less  weakening. 
It  is  very  difficult  to  ventilate  a  theatre  per- 
fectly, and  the  stage  is  notorious  for  its  draughts 
and  variations  in  temperature.  To  a  man  in 
good  condition  these  things  have  but  little  mean- 
ing; but  when  men  or  women  are  run  down, 
their  muscles  flaccid,  and  their  vitality  low,  they 
are  very  apt  to  break  down,  and  so  injure  their 
professional  career.  I  noticed  long  ago  that 
[  220  ] 


Burr  Mcintosh 

the  actors  who  rode  horseback,  fenced,  boxed, 
walked,  and  played  ball  were  very  seldom  ill; 
while  those  who  led  studious  and  sedentary  lives 
were  too  often  compelled  to  take  to  their  beds 
and  lose  valuable  time,  not  to  speak  of  engage- 
ments. This  is  why  I  take  part  in  so  many 
games  and  sports,  irrespective  of  the  enjoyment 
and  good-fellowship  which  they  afford." 

His  career  upon  the  stage  has  been  uniformly 
successful,  both  in  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain.  Among  the  plays  in  which  he  has 
been  a  prominent  figure  are  Cl  Under  Two 
Flags,"  where  he  portrayed  Lord  Rockingham ; 
4  (  Trilby, ' '  in  which  he  took  the  part  of  Taffy ; 
li  In  Mizzoura,"  where  he  essayed  the  role  of 
Jo  Vernon ;  i  c  The  Cowboy  and  the  Lady, ' ' 
where  he  played  Joe^  and  u  Under  Southern 
Skies." 

His  range  of  work  is  considerable,  he  having 
won  praise  in  comedy,  dialect,  character,  pa- 
thetic, humorous,  and  romantic  parts.  The 
characteristic  of  Burr  Mcintosh  is  his  patriot- 
ism. He  is  intensely  American,  and  is  a  strong 
advocate  of  an  American  drama  and  American 
art.  This  does  not  mean  that  he  is  at  all  nar- 
row-minded or  provincial.  On  the  contrary, 
he  is  a  man  of  the  world,  knowing  and  enjoy- 

I  221  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

ing  the  best  features  of  the  various  civilizations. 
These  have  only  served  to  make  him  realize  the 
sterling  worth  and  the  vast  potentialities  of  the 
institutions  which  have  made  the  republic  what 
it  is. 


[  222  ] 


Chauncey   Olcott 

'The  Domestic  Side  of  a  Nomad 


XVII 

Ghauncey  Olcott 

The  Domestic  Side  of  a  Nomad 

NOW  and  then  the  great  law  of  heredity 
plays  quaint  pranks  upon  the  children 
of  men.  It  brings  into  being  a  man 
whose  natural  instincts  carry  him  into  the  field 
and  forest,  and  away  from  the  crush  and  bustle 
of  big  cities.  In  some  long-gone  age  our  an- 
cestors wandered  slowly  from  one  fair  landscape 
to  another,  living  in  the  open,  and  shielding 
themselves  from  the  elements  by  simple  tents 
or  roughly  made  cabins.  They  were  healthy, 
hearty,  happy,  and  vigorous.  To  them  the 
cares  and  the  ailments  of  civilized  life  were 
unknown.  Their  neighbors  were  the  wild 
animals,  or  those  which,  though  beginning  to 
be  domesticated,  were  still  almost  as  wild  as 
in  their  savage  state. 

Such  a  man  is  Chauncey  Olcott.  Though 
a  student,  musician,  and  actor;  dancer,  linguist, 
and  artist ;  he  is  at  heart  a  son  of  the  forest  and 
a  child  of  the  grassy  plain.  The  open  air  is 
his  real  home.  What  other  people  call  homes 
15  [  225  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

are  to  him  incidents.  Of  habitations  he  has 
three — a  handsome  apartment  in  New  York,  on 
West  Thirty-fourth  Street,  near  Fifth  Avenue; 
a  studio  near  North  Washington  Square,  where 
he  cultivates  music  and  composes  the  songs  that 
have  helped  to  make  him  famous;  and  a  sum- 
mer place  at  Saratoga.  He  promises,  laugh- 
ingly, to  build  a  country-seat  of  the  old-fash- 
ioned sort,  where  he  will  settle  down  and  become 
a  staid  and  serious  farmer;  but  those  who  know 
him  well  regard  this  as  a  happy  figment  of  the 
imagination,  and,  at  the  furthest,  a  very  incom- 
plete truth.  If  he  should  construct  a  home,  it 
would  not  be  that  of  an  agriculturist,  but  of 
an  athlete,  artist,  and  lover  of  open-air  sports. 
Yet  he  has  already  accumulated  enough  mate- 
rial to  furnish  a  great  establishment  in  the  best 
style  of  art.  In  his  travels  at  home  and  abroad 
he  has  picked  up  mediaeval  tapestries,  wonder- 
ful hangings,  Oriental  embroideries,  armor  and 
weapons,  paintings  and  engravings,  ceramics 
and  curios,  inlaid  furniture,  odd  decorations 
from  past  ages,  bronzes  and  marbles,  and  a  fine 
library. 

These  are  divided  between  the  three  homes, 
and  many  go  with  him  in  his  baggage  as  trav- 
elling   companions.      His  nature  is   essentially 
[226] 


Chauncey  Olcott 

aesthetic.  Of  his  ceramics,  nearly  all  are  of 
classic  types,  and  scarcely  one  grotesque,  mod- 
ern, or  rococo. 

In  his  choice  of  furniture  he  manifests  the 
same  taste,  nearly  all  his  belongings  being 
marked  by  beauty  of  line  and  symmetry  of  plan 
rather  than  by  massive  strength  or  elaborately 
carved  detail.  In  colors  he  likes  the  warm,  rich 
hues  of  the  East,  and  not  the  delicate  tints  or 
chromatic  contrasts  of  Western  schools  of  fash- 
ion. His  city  apartments  are  in  gobelin  blue 
and  silver,  his  country  home  in  warm  maroon 
and  gold,  and  his  studio  in  a  mixture  of  tints 
patterned  after  the  general  design  of  the  Turko- 
man prayer-rug.  In  silver-ware  he  manifests 
a  strong  attachment  to  Greek  and  neo-Greek 
conceptions.  His  favorite  curves  are  the  three- 
centred  ovals,  or  so-called  egg  forms,  and  the 
borders  which  appeal  to  him  most  are  the  im- 
mortal honeysuckle,  interlaced  rectangular  line, 
and  Moorish  ogee.  In  decoration  he  prefers 
the  low  relief  or  the  shallow  intaglio,  and  in 
the  finish  of  metal  the  burnished  surface  which 
shows  the  color  and  beauty  of  the  atomic  struc- 
ture. If  he  have  an  art  fad,  it  is,  perhaps,  for 
pyrographic  work.  The  tableaux  in  wood  and 
leather  in  his  apartments,  sketched  with  a  burn- 
[227] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

ing  iron,  are  notable  for  their  variety,  number, 
and  beauty.  In  the  collection  of  books  he  runs 
toward  black  letter,  rubricated  initials,  vellum 
pages,  illuminated  volumes,  historical  bindings, 
and  the  other  features  so  dear  to  the  hearts  of 
bibliophiles.  Like  all  members  of  the  profes- 
sion, he  is  a  persistent  collector  of  theatrical 
prints  and  pictures,  and  has  the  largest  aggre- 
gate of  these  histrionic  treasures  in  the  United 
States,  if  not  in  the  world. 

It  would  be  difficult  for  his  tastes  to  be  other- 
wise. The  man,  in  his  physical  nature,  and  in 
much  of  his  spiritual,  belongs  to  a  past  age. 
He  is  essentially  a  Greek,  with  the  Hellenic  love 
of  beauty,  grace,  and  physical  perfection.  As 
may  have  been  noticed,  his  art  tastes  are  almost 
entirely  along  Greek  lines,  while  in  his  love  of 
athletic  games  and  of  the  full  development  of 
the  bodily  man  he  would  have  been  a  repre- 
sentative citizen  in  the  old  kingdom  of  Sparta. 
Most  men  pretend  to  be  aesthetic  and  make  be- 
lieve that  they  love  athletics.  They  disguise 
themselves  with  a  little  knowledge  of  art  terms, 
and  they  try  to  impose  upon  themselves  by  car- 
rying golf  bags  under  their  arm  or  wearing  naval 
caps  from  June  to  October.  With  Olcott  these 
qualities  are  an  integral  portion  of  his  character. 
[228] 


Cbauncey  Olcott 

He  admires  a  thoroughbred  horse ;  a  strong  man ; 
a  beautiful  woman ;  a  healthy,  bright-eyed  child, 
just  as  he  does  a  master  canvas  and  an  immortal 
marble  or  a  sublime  cathedral.  With  him  ath- 
letics are  a  joy  of  which  he  can  never  get  an 
excess.  In  the  summer  he  is  out  in  the  open 
before  the  dawn,  and  dusk  is  apt  to  find  him  in 
the  fields.  Through  this  complex  life  runs  a 
strong  aim  and  purpose. 

"  I  am  trying,"  said  Mr.  Olcott,  M  to  help 
the  world  along  with  the  genius  of  Ireland. 
That  little  island  has  much  to  teach,  and  if 
people  will  but  listen,  they  cannot  fail  to  be 
impressed  and  improved.  The  fortunes  of 
war,  the  mischances  of  statesmanship,  and  the 
awful  curse  of  poverty  have  combined  to  keep 
the  world  in  ignorance  of  everything  Irish,  ex- 
cepting its  sufferings,  hopes,  songs,  and  daunt- 
less courage.  Yet  these  are  a  very  small  part 
of  the  Irish  character  as  an  entity.  At  an  early 
period  they  realized  the  vital  importance  of  ex- 
ercise, sunlight,  fresh  air,  and  water  as  the  con- 
ditions precedent  of  all  health  and  happiness. 
They  cultivated  the  horse  and  dog;  they  ex- 
celled in  the  chase;  they  were  proficient  in  fal- 
conry, and  they  had  many  Izaak  Waltons  before 
that  immortal  angler  was  born.  Even  at  the 
[229] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

present  time  no  country  can  point  to  better  and 
more  daring  cross-country  riders  than  old  Erin. 
The  Irish  games  are  the  oldest  in  Northern 
Europe,  and  are  probably  coeval  with  the  Olym- 
pian games  of  Greece.  From  Ireland  the 
Scotch  drew  the  Caledonian  games,  and  only  in 
comparatively  modern  times  have  England  and 
the  United  States  wisely  followed  the  example. 
I  am  a  zealous  enthusiast  respecting  the  Irish 
games,  and  I  wish  to  see  them  nationalized  in 
the  Western  world. 

u  For  grace  and  vigor  nothing  could  be  bet- 
ter than  the  old-fashioned  game  of  handball, 
while  in  putting  the  stone  and  throwing  the 
hammer  the  Irish  still  hold  the  championship. 
In  music  and  song  their  genius  is  well  known; 
nevertheless,  it  is  greater  than  the  public  is 
aware.  From  the  earliest  years  the  singer  has 
been  the  honored  member  of  the  community, 
and  in  ancient  days  ranked  with  the  great  nobles 
in  the  courts  of  the  Milesian  kings.  They 
were  more  than  mere  vocalists,  because  all  were 
poets  in  their  own  right.  They  travelled  from 
Ireland  to  Scotland  and  England,  to  Brittany 
and  France,  and  even  to  the  courts  of  the 
French  monarchs.  They  brought  with  them, 
time  and  again,  to  their  shores,  the  jongleurs  and 
[230] 


Chauncey   Olcott 

trouveres  of  France,  so  that  Ireland  enjoyed  the 
same  music  as  that  which  stirred  the  hearts  of 
the  royal  circles  of  France.  How  many  who 
have  been  thrilled  with  the  c  Idylls  of  the  King  ' 
know  that  these  are  Celtic  legends,  and  that 
the  sonorous  names  of  Guinevere,  Gawain,  and 
Galahad  are  as  Celtic  as  O'Connell  and 
O'Donohue  ? 

c  (  The  songs  with  which  I  have  won  success 
may  be  called  echoes  of  the  Irish  muse.  In 
their  tone,  treatment,  simplicity,  and  direct  ap- 
peal to  the  human  heart,  they  simply  follow  the 
lines  laid  down  by  the  Irish  bards  of  long  ago. 
My  inspiration  for  musical  composition  of  this 
sort  has  been  derived  from  studying  the  glories 
of  Celtic  civilization,  and  filling  myself  with 
the  romance  and  poetry  of  their  triumphant 
years.  I  hope  also  to  aid  in  the  development 
of  the  Irish  drama.  It  is  a  field  which  was 
neglected  for  many  generations  by  playwrights, 
and  is  only  beginning  to  be  appreciated  to-day. 
Among  all  of  Shakespeare's  characters  there  is 
not  one  which  is  essentially  Irish.  The  same 
singular  deficiency  marks  the  other  Elizabethan 
dramatists.  Only  in  the  present  century  were 
Irish  character  and  Irish  scenes  utilized  for  stage 
purposes.  Strange  to  say,  the  impelling  cause 
[231] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

came    from    the     people,    and    not    from    the 
writers. 

M  For  a  long  time  the  Irish  boy  and  the  col- 
leen in  the  little  variety  theatre,  the  Irish  team, 
and  the  Irish  quartette  were  the  chief  repre- 
sentatives before  the  footlights.  Their  univer- 
sal popularity  called  attention  necessarily  to 
their  availability  for  a  higher  field.  The  very 
performers  themselves  appreciated  this  fact,  and 
by  degrees  elaborated  their  turns  into  sketches, 
their  sketches  into  curtain  raisers,  and  these  into 
full-fledged  dramas.  Then  the  playwrights 
stepped  in  and  met  them  half-way.  Yet  it  is 
only  within  my  own  memory  that  dramatists 
have  realized  the  wealth  of  character  to  be 
found  in  the  Irish  nature.  Where  before  they 
used  only  three  or  four  types,  they  now  employ 
thirty.  They  at  last  have  learned  that  the  Irish 
gentleman  is  as  fine  an  ideal  as  his  British, 
French,  or  German  counterpart;  that  the  belle 
of  wealthy  Irish  society  will  compare  with  her 
sister  of  New  York,  London,  or  Paris  \  that  the 
village  priest  is  as  interesting,  benevolent,  and 
devout  as  any  of  the  clerical  roles  which  have 
been  drawn  from  other  lands.  The  moment 
that  the  Irish  drama  and  Irish  music  receive 
the  attention  to  which  they  are  entitled, 
[232] 


Chauncey  Olcott 

there  will  be  a  superb  advance  in  the  world  of 
art." 

To  hear  Mr.  Olcott  talk  at  his  best,  you 
want  to  be  with  him  either  in  some  open-air 
game  or  in  a  vehicle  behind  a  pair  of  his  horses. 
In  the  former  his  conversation  is  partly  with  his 
friends  and  partly  with  the  ball  or  other  imple- 
ment with  which  the  game  is  played.  If  out 
driving,  the  main  current  of  his  thought  flows 
pleasantly  to  his  friends,  but  is  broken  ever  and 
anon  with  kindly  addresses  to  his  steeds,  or  com- 
ments upon  trees,  hills,  fields,  or  vistas.  His 
touch  with  nature  is  so  keen  that  every  inani- 
mate object  is  soon  enrolled  in  his  list  of  friends. 

In  driving  from  Saratoga  to  the  lake  he  seems 
to  know  every  tree,  house,  horse,  cow,  dog, 
and  bit  of  underbrush  along  the  route,  and  they 
all  know  him  in  their  own  way.  There  is  a 
spirit  of  dumb  sympathy  in  this  world  which 
pervades  all  animate  life,  and  which  makes  the 
dumb  brute  appreciate  and  return  the  affection 
which  is  offered  to  him  by  a  human  being.  It 
may  be,  as  the  poets  declare,  that  trees  have 
friends  and  foes.  If  so,  Mr.  Olcott  has  at  least 
two  hundred  and  fifty  admiring  acquaintances 
among  the  maples,  elms,  pines,  and  beeches 
along  the  roadway  of  the  famous  watering  place. 
[233] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

To  see  him  engaged  in  an  open-air  sport  ex- 
plains his  grace  and  vitality  upon  the  boards. 
Attired  in  regulation  costume  at  handball,  the 
muscles  stand  out  like  whip-cords,  and  for  hours 
he  is  here,  there,  and  everywhere,  with  the 
proverbial  quickness  and  accuracy  of  a  cat. 
Where  other  men  lose  their  wind  in  a  few  min- 
utes, and  are  tired  out  in  a  half  hour,  he  can 
play  a  half  day,  and  then  seem  as  fresh  as  when 
he  opened  the  game.  In  golf  he  has  long  been 
an  expert,  and  in  this  and  other  sports  holds 
many  medals  which  he  has  won  by  his  superior 
prowess. 

He  made  his  debut  in  Denman  Thompson's 
rustic  drama,  "  The  Old  Homestead,"  where 
the  remarkable  musical  quality  of  his  voice  at- 
tracted universal  attention.  Acting  upon  the 
advice  of  friends,  he  went  abroad  to  study  vo- 
calization, composition,  and  harmony.  He  put 
in  two  years  of  hard  work  upon  these  subjects, 
which,  added  to  his  natural  talent,  made  him  a 
well-equipped  and  thorough  musician.  On  his 
return  he  was  engaged  in  the  company  which 
produced  the  opera,  u  Miss  Decima."  There- 
after he  succeeded  William  J.  Scanlan  in  Augus- 
tus Pitou's  dramatic  company,  and  for  eleven 
years  he  has  been  identified  with  the  Irish  drama 
[234] 


Chauncey  Olcott 

in  the  United  States.  His  chief  successes  have 
been  in  u  Mavourneen,"  u  The  Minstrel  of 
Clare,"  "The  Irish  Artist,"  "  Sweet  Innis- 
carra,"  "  A  Romance  of  Athlone,"  and  "  Gar- 
rett O'Magh." 

He  has  played  over  three  thousand  times,  and 
to  never  less  than  fifteen  hundred  auditors.  It 
is  estimated  that  he  has  been  seen  by  seven  mil- 
lion spectators,  a  record  which  has  few  equals 
in  the  history  of  the  stage. 

No  modern  star  has  a  greater  hold  upon  the 
public  heart.  In  Mr.  Olcott' s  case  his  popu- 
larity has  a  humorous  side.  Somehow  he  makes 
a  deep  impression  upon  old  Irish  men  and  Irish 
women,  who  invariably  insist  upon  seeing  the 
11  broth  of  a  boy."  Shillelahs,  blackthorn  walk- 
ing-sticks, clumps  of  shamrock,  jugs  of  genuine 
potheen,  genuine  dudheens,  pieces  of  Irish  lace, 
and  carving  from  bog-oak  are  among  the  many 
tokens  which  he  has  received  from  his  quaint 
class  of  admirers.  Up  to  the  present  time  idol- 
atry has  expressed  itself  in  naming  one  hundred 
and  four  babies  after  him,  so  that  in  years  to 
come  the  initials  C.  O.  may  be  comparable  with 
those  of  G.  W.  for  the  Father  of  his  Country. 


[235] 


James   K.   Hackett — Mary 

Mannering-Hackett 

Their  Home  Life 


CO 
5^ 


fiP 


*3 


XVIII 

James   K.   Hackett — Mary 

Mannering-Hackett 
Tbeir  Home  Life 

IT  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  better  matched 
couple  than  James  K.  Hackett,  the  ro- 
mantic actor,  and  his  wife,  Mary  Man- 
nering.  Each  is  marked  to  an  unusual  extent 
by  physical  attractiveness,  histrionic  talent,  and 
intellectual  ability.  Their  tastes,  tendencies, 
temperaments,  and  ambitions  are  singularly  alike. 
Both  possess  the  social  and  personal  graces 
which  embellish  daily  life.  Their  marriage 
seems  to  have  rounded  out  their  characters  and 
increased  their  dramatic  power,  as  well  as  to 
have  augmented  their  happiness. 

Their  home  is  on  East  Thirty-third  Street, 
in  what  is  known  as  the  Murray  Hill  district 
of  the  metropolis.  It  is  a  four-storied  house, 
with  a  brown  stone  front,  of  the  narrow  type  so 
common  in  the  great  city.  It  is  neat,  conve- 
nient, and  full  of  comfort.  From  the  entrance 
you  pass  into  an  inviting  hall,  which  opens  into 
[239] 


James  K.  Hackett 

2l  small  reception-room  and  a  handsome  dining- 
room.  The  color  scheme  is  a  warm  olive. 
The  furnishing  is  rich  and  substantial,  and  sug- 
gests the  banker  rather  than  the  Bohemian.  It 
has  been  selected  with  great  care,  apparently 
piece  by  piece,  and  each  object  possesses  dis- 
tinctive character  and  beauty.  The  table  ser- 
vice and  ornaments  are  notable  in  this  regard. 

u  We  have,"  said  the  hostess,  u  quite  a 
weakness  for  prowling  around  in  our  leisure 
hours,  and  picking  up  pretty  things  for  the 
entire  house,  as  well  as  for  the  dining-room. 
Our  fads  go  well  together,  my  husband's  being 
directed  toward  antique,  carved,  or  original  fur- 
niture, and  mine  toward  porcelain  and  art  metal 
work.  The  combination  is  a  very  happy  one, 
because  by  the  time  he  has  discovered  and 
secured  a  colonial  carved  cabinet  or  an  inlaid 
Flemish  affair,  I  have  accumulated  just  about 
enough  bric-a-brac  and  ceramics  to  fill  it.  There 
is  the  additional  charm  of  looking  for  and  finding 
each  purchase  separately.  You  feel  as  if  you 
had  a  special  interest  in  every  one,  apart  from 
all  the  rest.  If  I  have  any  preference,  it  is  for 
the  products  of  the  English  kilns,  as  they  ap- 
peal to  the  sympathies  which  connect  the  heart 
with  its  native  land." 

[240] 


Mary  Mannering-Hackett 

Beyond  the  dining-room,  on  the  rear  wall  of 
the  house,  is  an  old-fashioned  balcony,  whose 
iron  railing  is  so  overgrown  with  vines  and 
creepers,  that  in  winter  it  looks  a  quaint  Jap- 
anese wood-carving,  while  in  summer  it  is  a 
bower,  restful  and  picturesque. 

"  It  is  one  of  our  favorite  haunts,"  said  Mr. 
Hackett.  c<  But  for  the  adjacent  brick  walls 
I  could  easily  imagine  it  the  balcony  of  the 
Capulet  Palace,  where  Juliet  sat  and  listened  to 
Romeo  in  the  garden  beneath.  It  appeals  to 
us  professionally,  as  we  love  the  great  tragedy 
of  the  two  lovers.  I  have  played  in  the  drama, 
and  my  wife  threatens  to  some  of  these  days, 
which  is  another  bond  of  union.  Beyond  its 
associations,  the  balcony  is  a  capital  place  in 
which  to  sit  and  read  on  warm  days,  or  to 
smoke  and  chat  in  summer  evenings." 

The  second  floor  contains  three  important 
apartments — the  salon,  library,  and  sitting- 
room.  The  keynote  of  the  house  is  found  in 
the  library.  The  adjoining  rooms  display  taste, 
refinement,  and  culture;  but  they  represent  the 
social  phase  of  their  owners'  natures,  which  dif- 
fers little  from  that  of  other  professionals  of  the 
same  standing.  The  library  reveals  their  indi- 
viduality, and  throws  a  clear  light  on  their  daily 
16  [  241  ] 


James  K.  Hackett 

life.  Though  as  neat  and  well  kept  as  the 
cabin  of  an  admiral  in  days  of  peace,  it  bears 
all  the  marks  of  never-ending  toil  and  study. 
The  host  very  appropriately  calls  it  his  ' !  work- 
shop." A  glance  at  the  books  reveals  that 
some  one  in  the  house  has  taken  the  Cl  Little 
Go,"  the  M  Great  Go,"  and  holds  the  A.B.  or 
A.M.  degree.  Here  are  classical  dictionaries, 
the  Greek  poets,  the  Roman  prose  writers,  the 
masterpieces  of  modern  European  literatures,  and 
works  on  higher  mathematics,  the  sciences,  and 
the  applied  arts.  They  represent  an  important 
chapter  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Hackett.  He  re- 
ceived a  superior  primary  education  at  school, 
which  was  reenforced  by  the  aid  he  received 
from  his  mother,  Mrs.  Clara  C.  Hackett,  who 
was  an  actress  of  ability  and  of  rare  intellec- 
tuality. He  entered  the  College  of  the  City  of 
New  York,  from  which  he  was  graduated  with 
honors  in  1891,  and  thereupon  took  up  the 
study  of  the  law,  in  both  theory  and  practice, 
on  which  he  expended  another  year.  Although 
he  then  passed  from  the  bar  to  the  boards,  he 
did  not  lose  his  love  for  the  studies  on  which 
he  had  spent  so  large  a  part  of  his  life. 

u  In   my  college  days,"  said  the   actor,  u  I 
question  if  I   saw  the  value  of  severe  mental 
[242] 


Mary  Mannering-Hackett 

training,  especially  in  its  relation  to  the  stage. 
The  two  seemed  spheres  of  mental  activity  be- 
tween which  there  was  little  or  no  relation.  I 
have  grown  wiser  with  the  flight  of  time,  and 
realize  the  benefits  conferred  by  my  Alma  Ma- 
ter. The  discipline  has  proved  of  vast  service, 
as  have  the  knowledge  of  languages,  the  study 
of  the  classic  dramatists,  and  the  examination 
of  the  laws  and  forces  which  underlie  history 
and  literature.  It  was  a  notable  addition  to  my 
equipment  as  an  actor." 

While  the  library  is  rich  in  books  of  erudition 
and  reference,  it  abounds  in  dramatic  and  con- 
temporary literature.  Both  owners  are  vora- 
cious readers,  and  endeavor  to  keep  thoroughly 
in  touch  with  the  great  world  of  letters.  Mr. 
Hackett  has  an  odd  habit  of  perusing  current 
publications  in  quest  of  dramatic  material. 

u  All  books  and  stories,"  he  said,  u  embody 
the  experience,  observation,  and  study  of  their 
authors.  In  every  one  there  is  a  dramatic  ele- 
ment, which  varies  from  insignificance  to  strik- 
ing proportions.  The  world  is  full  of  embryo 
playwrights,  as  well  as  poets,  and  every  day 
some  scene  or  situation  is  depicted  in  fiction, 
which  would  make  a  profound  impression  if 
portrayed  properly  upon  the  stage." 
[243] 


James  K.  Hackett 

A  large  collection  of  the  poets  shows  that 
both  husband  and  wife  have  a  deep  love  for  the 
muse.  A  glimpse  at  the  backs  of  the  volumes 
discloses  a  preponderance  of  tragic,  dramatic, 
and  heroic  singers,  a  smaller  representation  of 
the  poets  of  the  emotions,  and  few  of  those 
who  write  in  minor  key.  This  is  not  peculiar 
to  the  subjects  of  this  sketch,  but  seems  to 
mark  the  profession  as  a  class.  If  a  vote  could 
be  taken,  the  most  popular  poets  of  the  stage 
would  be  found  to  be  Shakespeare,  Omar,  Whit- 
man, Poe,  Field,  Tennyson,  Longfellow,  Swin- 
burne, and  Burns. 

In  the  library  the  husband  and  wife  learn 
their  parts,  and,  when  together,  discuss  the  pos- 
sibilities, treatment,  and  stage  business  of  each 
role.  This  is  not  as  frequent,  probably,  as 
either  desires.  Each  is  the  head  of  a  large 
company,  which  appears  only  in  the  leading 
cities,  so  that  their  chances  of  meeting  more 
than  for  an  hour  or  so  during  the  season  are 
extremely  small. 

The  walls  of  the  house  are  hung  with  many 
pictures,  of  which  a  striking  feature  is  the  num- 
ber of  family  portraits.  In  these  paintings  both 
husband  and  wife  take  a  pardonable  pride. 
While  great  ancestors  do  not  confer  distinction 
[244] 


Mary  Mannering-Hackett 

on  unworthy  descendants,  unless  it  be  of  a  very 
negative  character,  yet  those  who  come  from 
long  lines  of  good  descent  are  justified  in  pro- 
claiming the  virtues  and  achievements  of  the 
past. 

Miss  Mannering  belongs  to  an  old  English 
county  family  of  high  social  position  for  several 
centuries.  Mr.  Hackett  is  a  son  of  the  late 
James  Henry  Hackett,  one  of  America's  great- 
est players  in  the  last  century,  and  certainly  the 
finest  Falstaff  who  has  yet  appeared.  On  his 
mother's  side  he  is  descended  from  that  patri- 
otic divine,  Rev.  Abraham  Keteltas,  the  chap- 
lain of  the  Continental  Congress.  Through 
this  side  of  the  house  he  is  a  blood  relative  of 
the  Duanes,  and  of  the  Beekmans,  De  Peysters, 
Schuylers,  Roosevelts,  and  other  old  Knicker- 
bocker families. 

The  tone  of  the  house  is  essentially  that  of 
culture  rather  than  of  art.  Not  that  it  is  at  all 
deficient  in  aesthetic  elements.  Qn  the  con- 
trary, these  are  everywhere,  and  show  their 
owners  to  be  keenly  alive  to  all  the  beauties  of 
civilization,  whether  musical,  pictorial,  glyptic, 
or  chromatic.  But  the  impression  produced  is 
that  of  culture  finding  diversion  in  art,  and  not 
that  of  art  finding  mental  delight  in  culture. 
[245] 


James  K.  Hackett 

It  is  the  atmosphere  of  the  bookcase  and  the 
desk,  and  not  that  of  the  studio  or  the  music- 
room. 

To  his  many  natural  advantages,  as  well  as 
to  his  histrionic  talent,  Mr.  Hackett  owes  his 
rapid  progress  on  the  stage.  In  his  school  and 
college  days  he  was  active  and  prominent  in 
amateur  dramatics,  displaying  even  then  a  ver- 
satility of  no  mean  order. 

He  made  his  professional  debut  in  1892  as 
Francois  in  ((  The  Broken  Seal."  This  was  a 
minor  part,  in  which  there  was  no  opportunity 
to  display  high  ability.  A  week  later,  by  rea- 
son of  the  withdrawal  of  a  leading  member  of 
the  company,  he  was  promoted  to  the  latter' s 
place,  and  made  a  prompt  hit.  In  the  next 
two  years  he  appeared  successfully  in  Lotta's, 
Augustin  Daly's,  and  Arthur  Rehan's  com- 
panies. In  1893  ^e  became  a  star  under  the 
management  of  D.  A.  Bonta,  and  from  that 
time  on  he  has  been  prominent  in  the  public  eye. 

Of  the  plays  with  which  his  name  has  been 
associated,  the  chief  are :  ( (  The  Private  Secre- 
tary," "  Lady  Gladys,"  "  Heart  and  Hands," 
"Snowball,"  "  The  Pink  Mask,"  "Madame 
Sans-Gene,"  "Romeo  and  Juliet,"  "The 
Queen's  Necklace,"  "  The  Home  Secretary," 
[246] 


Mary  Mannering-Hackett 

"The  Prisoner  of  Zenda,"  "  The  Courtship 
of  Leonie,"  "  The  Mayflower/  '  "The  Prin- 
cess and  the  Butterfly/'  "  The  Tree  of  Knowl- 
edge," and  "  Rupert  of  Hentzau." 

His  workmanship  has  been  so  good  in  nearly 
all  his  varying  roles  that  it  is  difficult  to  assign 
him  to  any  particular  class.  He  is  delightfully 
droll  in  farce,  picturesque  and  poetic  in  roman- 
tic drama,  refined  and  impressive  in  society 
plays,  graceful  and  vigorous  in  melodramatic 
compositions,  tender  and  intense  in  tragedy. 
His  versatility  and  culture  enable  him  to  enact 
apparently  every  type   with   success. 

Miss  Mannering  justly  enjoys  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  one  of  the  belles  of  the  American 
stage,  as  well  as  one  of  its  ablest  members. 
She  is  of  English  birth  and  nurture,  and  re- 
ceived an  excellent  education,  in  which  the 
accomplishments  formed  an  important  part. 

She  made  her  debut  on  the  British  stage  in 
a  small  speaking  part  in  u  Hero  and  Leander." 
Here  her  comeliness,  grace,  and,  above  all,  her 
musical  voice,  attracted  attention,  and  secured 
for  her  an  engagement  in  a  first-class  travelling 
company.  It  had  the  rare  advantage  of  a  man- 
ager who  was  a  good  actor,  a  polished  gentle- 
man, and  a  ripe  scholar.  She  remained  with 
[247] 


James  K.  Hackett 

this  troupe  seven  years,  which  proved  a  dra- 
matic school  of  the  best  sort  for  the  fair  no- 
vitiate. The  variety  of  roles  enacted  during 
this  period  was  very  large,  including  Shake- 
sperian,  emotional,  comedy,  tragedy,  society, 
melodrama,  extravaganza,  and  farce.  The 
work  was  hard,  and  at  times  very  tiring;  but 
her  robust  health  and  strength  enabled  her  to 
stand  the  strain  with  seeming  ease. 

It  was  while  performing  in  this  organization 
that  she  was  seen  by  Daniel  Frohman,  the  New 
York  manager,  who  was  then  visiting  England. 
His  critical  eye  was  quick  to  notice  her  beauty, 
talent,  and  versatility,  and  he  promptly  engaged 
her  for  the  Lyceum  Theatre  Company  of  New 
York. 

She  made  a  very  favorable  impression  upon 
the  metropolis  in  u  The  Courtship  of  Leonie," 
u  The  First  Gentleman  of  Europe,"  and  "  The 
Mayflower."  These  were  followed  by  artistic 
triumphs  in  tl  The  Princess  and  the  Butterfly," 
"Trelawney  of  the  Wells,"  and  li  Janice 
Meredith." 

Her  last,  and  probably  her  greatest,  success 
was  made  in  u  Camille,"  in  San  Francisco,  in 
which  she  presented  a  new  and  picturesque  in- 
terpretation of  Dumas'  famous  heroine. 
[248] 


Mary  Mannering-Hackett 

In  commenting  on  this  part,  Miss  Manner- 
ing  said,  ((  Like  all  ambitious  women  on  the 
stage,  I  have  longed  to  play  Camille  from  the 
first.  I  thought  that  beneath  the  lines  I  could 
see  spiritual,  emotional,  and  dramatic  features 
which,  when  combined  in  one  character,  would 
make  a  different  conception  from  anything  yet 
presented. 

u  To  me  the  creation  is  more  than  a  study 
of  the  deep  emotions ;  it  involves  the  analysis 
of  the  awakening  of  a  dormant,  moral,  and 
spiritual  nature  by  the  sudden  unfolding  of  a 
giant  love.  The  interpretation  must  be  psycho- 
logic as  well  as  emotional.  It  embraces  the 
regeneration  of  a  human  being  and  the  fierce 
struggle  in  a  new-born  conscience  between  old 
and  new  habits,  tendencies,  desires,  and  aspira- 
tions." 

Marguerite  Gautier  is  not  the  Ultima  Thule 
of  her  hopes.  Beyond  this  great  part,  she  con- 
templates appearing  in  a  series  of  the  Shake- 
spearian heroines.  So  far  as  grace  and  pulchri- 
tude, musical  speech  and  poetic  temperament 
are  concerned,  no  one  is  better  qualified  natu- 
rally for  Juliet,  Ophelia,  Rosalind,  Portia,  and 
Viola. 

When  the  theatrical  season  closes,  both  Miss 
[249] 


James  K.  Hackett 

Mannering  and  Mr.  Hackett  are  up  and  away. 
Their  favorite  modes  of  spending  the  summer 
are  travelling  abroad  or  roughing  it  at  home  in 
the  open.  They  are  devotees  of  the  rod  and 
gun,  and  are  experts  in  both  fishing  and  hunting. 
u  It  is  a  delightful  thing  to  have  a  wife," 
said  the  actor,  u  who  is  a  good  shot;  but  the 
joy  is  not  always  unalloyed.  I  recall  the  proud 
pleasure  with  which  I  saw  her  bring  down  reed- 
birds  on  the  Delaware  not  so  many  years  ago. 
I  recall  the  happy  smile  with  which  I  counted 
and  announced  the  number  of  those  gastronomic 
dainties  which  fell  before  her  unerring  aim.  I 
recall  most  of  all  the  quiet  stranger  who  nodded 
approval,  with  the  remark,  '  Thanks  for  the 
number.  I'm  a  game-warden.  Your  license 
is  incorrect,  and  I'm  sorry  to  ask  you  to  pay 
me  one  dollar  a  bird  under  the  laws  of  this 
State!'" 


[250] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.   Robert    Edeson 

At  Home 


* 


-3 


XIX 

Mr.   and  Mrs.   Robert  Edeson 
At  Home 

IF  Robert  Edeson  the  star  has  a  dominant 
characteristic  in  private  life,  it  is  repose 
and  self-possession.  He  has  the  self- 
control  of  the  Englishman,  without  the  latter' s 
phlegm;  the  serenity  of  the  Spaniard,  without 
the  latter' s  apathy  and  indifference;  the  joyous- 
ness  of  the  Frenchman,  without  his  volatility. 
He  belongs  to  a  mental  class  of  which  General 
Grant  was  the  most  famous  type,  yet,  unlike 
the  latter,  he  is  a  conversationalist  of  rare  power 
and  interest. 

His  personal  appearance  is  in  keeping  with 
his  mentality.  Tall,  powerfully  built,  and  ath- 
letic, he  seems  to  have  been  formed  by  nature 
for  such  roles  as  Spartacus  and  Ingomar.  He 
impresses  one  with  a  feeling  of  strength  and 
vitality,  and  not  of  mere  massiveness  and  weight. 
Had  he  served  in  the  Napoleonic  wars,  he  would 
have  been  a  heavy  dragoon.  His  head  is  well 
set  upon  his  shoulders,  and  is  of  the  rare  mega- 
[253] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

cephalous  type.  It  is  long,  as  with  the  average 
Anglo-Saxon,  but  is  also  surprisingly  broad. 
The  forehead  would  attract  attention  by  either 
its  height  or  width. 

So  marked  a  cerebral  development  would  sug- 
gest an  excess  of  intellectuality  at  the  expense 
of  physical  well-being,  but  for  the  full,  well- 
rounded  jaw,  which  makes  the  face  a  symmetric 
Gothic  rather  than  Grecian  oval.  The  eyes 
are  somewhat  inset,  and  the  eyelids  full,  as  is 
so  often  the  case  with  those  with  great  powers 
of  memory  and  of  language. 

The  man's  ensemble  is  that  of  a  mens  sana  in 
corpore  sano.  It  voices  a  symmetric  and  well- 
rounded  organization,  physical  and  mental.  In 
conversation  and  habits  he  bears  out  the  im- 
pression produced.  His  attributes  are  those  of 
the  well-balanced,  well-trained  mind.  His  cul- 
ture is  not  confined  to  the  footlights,  but  ex- 
tends into  nearly  every  field  of  mental  labor  or 
enjoyment.  He  meets  every  visitor  upon  the 
latter' s  own  ground.  Quick  perceptions,  keen 
observation,  and  an  admirable  memory  combine 
to  make  him  as  successful  in  the  social  circle  as 
upon  the  boards.  These,  added  to  a  quaint 
humor,  render  him  entertaining,  and  give  to  his 
speech  the  charm  of  ever-recurring  surprise. 
[254] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

But  for  this  factor  he  would  be  serious  and 
thoughtful  to  an  unwelcome  degree. 

His  home  on  West  Forty-third  Street,  New 
York  City,  is  a  spacious  establishment,  which 
well  represents  the  tastes  of  the  owner  and  his 
gifted  wife.  Mr.  Edeson  married  from  the 
profession,  his  spouse  having  been  Miss  Ellen 
Berg,  a  German  actress  of  high  standing,  who 
came  to  this  country  on  a  professional  visit 
some  years  ago.  The  American  people  so 
pleased  her,  and  she  the  people,  that  she  made 
it  her  permanent  residence,  meeting  and  win- 
ning here  her  husband.  She  suggests  a  gypsy 
belle  rather  than  a  German,  having  the  former's 
lithe  figure,  agile  grace,  Oriental  face  and  man- 
ner, and  natural  aptitude  for  music.  She  will 
long  be  recalled  by  theatre-goers  for  her  brilliant 
acting  in  the  sparkling  comedy,  u  Incog." 

Her  tastes  coincide  with  his,  save  that  she 
excels  in  the  technique  of  music  and  he  in  that 
of  painting,  for  which  he  has  rare  knack,  if  not 
high  talent. 

The  place  is  furnished  in  excellent  taste,  the 
tone  being  intellectual  rather  than  pictorial. 
Books,  paintings,  bric-a-brac,  rich  furniture, 
and  fine  upholstery  are  everywhere,  but  they 
are  of  such  a  character  and  so  arranged  as  to 
[255] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

form  a  restful  and  calm  ensemble.  The  ele- 
ment of  surprise  runs  through  the  equipment 
and  decoration  of  the  house.  In  the  salon  and 
other  apartments  the  rich,  quiet  draperies  of  the 
furniture  turn  out  to  be  shawls — Persian,  Cash- 
mere, and  Indian.  In  the  smoking-den  a  gleam- 
ing metallic  reflector  proves  to  be  a  trophy  of 
swords  arranged  as  the  radii  of  a  circle.  You 
pass  from  a  room  where  the  atmosphere  is  that 
of  the  period  of  Louis  Quinze,  and  you  are  in 
a  Japanese  tea  house  such  as  may  be  found  in 
the  wealthy  districts  of  Tokio  and  Kioto. 

It  is  a  small  section  from  the  Land  of  the 
Rising  Sun.  Bamboo  furniture  and  rattan 
chairs,  mattings  and  art  squares,  low  tables  and 
teapoys,  dragon  bronzes  and  delicate  kake- 
monos, figurines  and  carvings,  grotesque  Kioto 
ware  and  embroidered  screens,  translucent  lac- 
quers and  dainty  creations  of  tortoise-shell, 
present  all  the  salient  features  of  Japanese  dec- 
orative art.  The  place  requires  naught  but  a 
little  tea-girl  in  a  flowered  kimono,  or  a  Geisha 
in  her  brilliant  robes,  to  be  a  perfect  reproduc- 
tion of  the  Far  East. 

( *  There  is  a  craze  in  the  theatrical  profession 
for  Japan  and  Japanese  art,"  said  Mrs.  Edeson, 
u  and  I  must  plead  guilty  to  having  caught  the 
[256] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

malady.  It  may  be  that  the  dramatic  career  of 
the  Mikadate  appeals  to  the  Thespian  heart,  or 
that  its  exquisite  art  is  at  last  receiving  the  rec- 
ognition to  which  it  is  entitled.  Every  year  it 
grows  in  popularity.  Were  not  the  trip  across 
the  continent  and  the  Pacific  so  long,  it  would 
be  a  formidable  competitor  to  Europe.  We 
are  beginning  to  borrow  material  for  our  own 
stage  from  that  land.  The  {  Mikado '  was  a 
revelation  in  this  respect.  (  The  Geisha  Girl ' 
and  l  Madame  Butterfly '  have  increased  the 
strength  of  the  impression  already  made. 

11  Some  of  these  days,  when  we  can  devote 
a  long  vacation  to  it,  Mr.  Edeson  and  myself 
are  going  to  visit  Japan,  and  explore  it  as  far 
as  our  time-table  will  permit." 

The  smoking-den  is  unique.  Its  general 
color  is  dark  crimson.  Its  furniture  is  Bohe- 
mian in  laziness  and  ease.  Besides  the  sword 
trophy  on  the  wall  are  compasses  of  all  sorts, 
pictures,  bric-a-brac,  and  all  the  paraphernalia 
dear  to  the  lover  of  the  weed.  It  is  a  cheerful 
room  at  all  times,  but  doubly  so  after  dinner, 
when  it  is  filled  with  guests,  and  the  air  is  rich 
with  tobacco  smoke,  wit,  and  humor. 

Very  proud  of  his  collection  of  pipes  is  the 
owner  of  the  den.  u  It  is  a  wise  thing,"  he 
i7  [  257  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

said,  ((  to  cover  your  failings  with  the  glamour 
of  science  and  art.  Smoking  is  commonplace, 
but  when  you  make  it  a  means  of  illustrating 
travel,  history,  races,  and  civilizations,  it  be- 
comes as  dignified  as  a  college  professor  or  a 
cyclopaedia.  Just  look  at  those  pipes.  Each 
one  tells  a  long  and  curious  story.  That  calu- 
met was  made  from  red  sandstone  by  savages, 
and  has  probably  given  delight  to  warrior  and 
squaw  alike.  It  may  have  been  the  one  which 
amazed  Columbus  when  he  saw  the  red  men 
for  the  first  time  draw  fire  from  clay  bowls,  and 
blow  the  smoke  through  their  devilish  nostrils. 
The  dudheen  is  from  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  has 
an  independent  and  assertive  expression  in  its 
shape  which  suggests  the  people  who  use  it. 
The  student  pipe  there,  heavy,  substantial, 
capacious,  and  richly  carved,  comes  from  the 
Vaterland.  It  is  like  the  one  Herr  Teufels- 
drockh  smoked  in  (  Sartor  Resartus. '  The  long 
church-warden  is  a  remembrance  of  Alfred 
Tennyson,  that  being  the  variety  he  always 
used.  From  such  a  fragile  stem  came  (  Locks- 
ley  Hall,'  the  (  Bugle  Song,'  the  '  Charge  of 
the  Light  Brigade,'  and  the  c  Idylls  of  the  King.' 
Does  not  the  narghile  look  lonely  ?  It  misses 
the  black  slave  who  keeps  it  filled  and  the  houri 
[258] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

of  the  harem  who  used  to  hold  its  amber  mouth- 
piece between  her  scarlet-stained  lips.  The 
great  democrat  is  the  simple  brier-wood,  which 
you  find  in  every  land.  Beside  it  is  the  aristo- 
cratic meerschaum,  which  must  be  shielded  lest 
contact  with  the  world  destroy  its  beauty.  That 
humble  corncob  is  eloquent  of  Yankee  talent. 
He  wanted  to  smoke,  he  had  broken  his  pipe, 
and  the  nearest  store  was  miles  and  miles  away. 
He  looked  about  him,  and  with  jackknife,  corn- 
cob, and  elder  branch — presto! — produced  a 
pipe  worthy  of  a  king. 

* l  What  a  tale  of  poverty  is  condensed  in  that 
Chinese  bamboo  water  pipe!  A  poor  wretch 
craved  the  fragrant  leaf,  but  could  not  afford 
the  half  cent  which  a  clay  pipe  costs.  The 
bamboo  is  a  weed  out  there,  and  the  coolie's 
time  is  worth  but  a  few  cents  a  day.  With 
clumsy  tools  he  cuts  a  bamboo,  fashions  it  pain- 
fully into  a  pipe,  and  then  has  something  which 
will  last  a  lifetime.  It  will  descend  to  his  chil- 
dren and  grandchildren,  growing  sweeter  with 
the  years. 

In  addition  to  their  intrinsic  value,  are  the 

associations  connected  with  my  pipes.      One  is 

a  souvenir  of  a  great  city,  another  of  a  delightful 

voyage,  a  third  of  a  happy  summer  in  the  forest, 

[259  J 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

a  fourth  of  an  absent  friend,  and  a  fifth  of  a 
battle  or  a  war-ship." 

If  the  tea-room  represents  the  mistress  of  the 
household,  and  the  smoking-den  the  master,  the 
dining-room  stands  for  the  two  jointly.  Ex- 
cepting for  one  feature,  it  would  not  occasion 
remark.  Its  appearance  is  rich,  subdued,  and 
homelike.  The  furniture  is  handsome  but 
plain,  the  color  scheme  a  gobelin  gray,  the  dado 
tapestried,  and  the  lace  curtains  accentuated 
with  ornately  embossed  applique.  But  the 
glory  of  the  room  is  its  porcelains.  Around 
the  walls  are  arranged  specimens  of  nearly  every 
known  ceramic  school.  They  are  grouped  with 
reference  to  nationality,  and  selected  with  a  view 
to  exhibit  glazes,  processes,  or  styles  of  treat- 
ment peculiar  to  each  school  of  importance. 
Noteworthy  among  them  is  a  group  of  brilliant 
creations  from  the  Rookwood  potteries  of  Cin- 
cinnati. 

11  My  wife  and  I,"  said  the  actor,  u  have  a 
deep  affection  for  the  higher  phases  of  the  pot- 
ter's art.  Each  of  us  has  always  loved  to  wan- 
der through  stores  and  bazaars,  potteries  and 
collections,  and  to  pick  up  pieces  which  pleased 
the  fancy  or  represented  something  in  the  his- 
tory of  ceramics.  To  any  student,  these  prod- 
[260] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

ucts  of  the  kiln  have  a  symbolic  significance 
equal  in  interest  to  that  of  their  physical  being. 
In  every  age  they  represent  the  high-water  mark 
of  civilization.  Before  Moses  was  born,  the 
kings  of  Babylonia  were  competing  for  the  mas- 
terpieces of  the  potter's  guild  of  Lugash,  a  city 
dead  and  forgotten  for  at  least  thirty-five  cen- 
turies. The  Etruscan  vases,  the  Portland  vase, 
and  the  works  of  Palissy  and  della  Robbia,  Bott- 
ger  and  Wedgwood,  are  historic  monuments, 
as  much  as  the  temples  and  palaces  of  the  world. 
There  is  a  certain  patristic  element  in  collecting 
which  gratifies  me.  Of  late  years  America  has 
entered  the  field,  and  with  singular  vigor  has 
already  won  distinction  by  its  work.  While  the 
Rookwood  artists  have  led  in  this  movement, 
they  have  been  ably  supported  by  a  little  army 
of  talented  men  and  women.  This  in  itself 
is  extraordinary,  because,  in  the  past,  woman's 
name  was  unknown  in  this  branch  of  art.  At 
the  present  time  in  this  country  they  are  worthy 
rivals  of  their  brothers. 

* c  Our  love  of  these  things  is  part  of  a  larger 
love;  viz.,  of  archaeology.  This  has  long  been 
my,  I  may  say  our,  hobby.  It  is  a  fascinating 
science,  and  appeals  to  a  histrion  with  especial 
force.  Stage  necessities  compel  an  actor  to 
[261] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

make  and  keep  himself  informed  upon  the  seem- 
ingly insignificant  details  of  life  in  the  past.  It 
forms  a  fruitful  subject  of  conversation  among 
professionals,  and  an  important  matter  to  the 
playwright,  the  stage  manager,  and  the  scenic 
artist." 

Professional  duties  and  literary  habits  do  not 
interfere  with  the  actor's  care  for  his  physical 
well-being.  Every  day,  unless  prevented  by 
uncontrollable  causes,  he  devotes  some  time 
to  corporeal  culture.  He  fences,  boxes,  rides, 
rows,  walks,  or  goes  through  a  course  of  calis- 
thenics of  his  own  creation.  In  this  he  follows 
the  modern  theory  of  exercising  for  health  and 
grace,  and  not  for  big  muscles  and  bulging  chest. 
His  aim  is  to  have  every  muscle  and  nerve  in 
good,  active  condition,  and  the  exercises  are 
framed  accordingly. 

In  leisure  hours  he  uses  the  palette  and  brush, 
turning  out  commendable  work.  u  Painting," 
said  Mr.  Edeson,  ( c  is  my  diversion,  and  not  my 
metier  nor  special  work.  I  have  the  actor's 
love  of  color  and  of  composition.  Did  it  ever 
occur  to  you  that  in  arranging  a  stage  tableau 
or  climax  you  were  doing  exactly  the  same  thing 
an  artist  does  in  planning  a  canvas  ?  The  best 
conceptions  in  line  and  color  can  be  spoiled  by 
[262] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

inharmonious  juxtaposition ;  and  this  applies  to 
plays  as  well  as  to  pictures.  This  analogy  is  not 
accidental.  The  arts  are  sisters,  and  the  same 
principles  run  through  them  all.  I  don't  sup- 
pose that  to  be  a  painter  makes  a  man  a  better 
player,  but  I  do  know  that  it  does  not  make 
him  a  worse  one." 

According  to  his  professional  brethren,  Mr. 
Edeson  has  earned  his  rank  as  star.  Stage 
canons  are  different  from  those  of  the  public. 
To  the  player,  merit  means  faithful  study,  care- 
ful work,  and  wide  experience,  rather  than  the 
sudden  exhibition  of  genius  in  a  particular  role. 
Yet  the  man's  career  may  be  measured  by  either 
of  the  standards  without  giving  appreciably  dif- 
ferent results. 

He  began  at  the  first  round  of  the  ladder,  and 
climbed  steadily  upward.  He  became  known 
as  capable,  competent,  able,  and  then  talented. 
During  the  past  five  years  his  roles  were  so  ex- 
cellent in  conception  and  execution  as  to  attract 
general  notice.  When  he  appeared  in  u  The 
Little  Minister,"  he  made  his  character  a  star 
part,  and  aroused  enthusiasm  wherever  it  was 
presented. 

His  appearance  as  sole  star  in  u  Soldiers  of 
Fortune,"  a  dramatization  by  Augustus  Thomas 
[263] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

of  Richard  Harding  Davis's  stirring  novel,  under 
the  management  of  Henry  B.  Harris,  was  the 
inevitable  sequence  of  his  preceding  successes. 
Before  him  lies  a  long  and  brilliant  future.  He 
has  a  notable  power  of  interpreting  the  poetic  as 
well  as  the  dramatic  side  of  modern  life,  and  is 
therefore  in  perfect  touch  with  the  stage  of  to- 
day. Beyond  this,  he  is  strongest  in  the  direc- 
tions toward  which  the  drama  is  tending. 

In  his  literary  tastes,  Mr.  Edeson  follows  the 
injunction  of  Emerson,  and  prefers  old  to  new 
authors.  Of  fiction  writers  his  favorites  are 
Dickens,  Thackeray,  Hawthorne,  Dumas,  and 
Balzac.  He  enjoys  biographical  and  autobio- 
graphical works,  and  has  a  warm  corner  in  his 
heart  for  Boswell  and  Pepys.  The  period  which 
focalized  in  Napoleon  Bonaparte  has  no  more 
enthusiastic  student.  In  poetry  he  prefers  the 
dramatic  and  tragic  muse  to  the  idyllic  and 
comic.  He  is  familiar  with  new  masters — 
Ibsen,  Maeterlinck,  Hauptmann,and  Sudermann, 
as  well  as  with  their  teachers,  Tolstoi  and 
Schopenhauer — but  regards  their  productions  as 
things  to  be  read  for  duty  and  not  delight. 

He  offsets  them  with  the  published  works 
of  Pinero,  Jones,  Esmond,  Chambers,  Bernard 
Shaw,  and  Stephen  Phillips.  The  last-named 
[264] 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Robert  Edeson 

poet-dramatist  is  the  most  important  god  in  his 
pantheon.  The  books  in  his  library  embody 
these  tastes.  It  may  be  noticed  that  there  is 
an  absence  of  what  is  known  as  light  literature. 
The  actor  does  not  believe  in  books  which  have 
no  purpose  or  intrinsic  value.  For  the  time 
he  bestows  upon  a  printed  page  he  expects  some 
return  which  will  or  may  be  of  future  use. 


[265] 


Joseph  Jefferson,    America  s 
First  Actor 
His  Inner  Life 


Mr.  "Jefferson  at  his  Easel, 


XX 

yoseph   yefferson^   America  9s 
First  Actor 
His  Inner  Life 

THE  halo  of  immortality  begins  to  sur- 
round some  men  long  before  they 
pass  away  from  life.  When  in  his 
old  age  an  actor  commands  the  love  and 
reverence  of  the  English-speaking  race,  he  has 
reached  a  niche  in  the  temple  of  fame  seldom 
awarded  to  the  great  men  of  the  earth.  This 
is  the  case  with  Joseph  Jefferson,  in  whom  are 
realized  the  best  tendencies  and  achievements 
of  the  American  theatre.  Fortune  or  fate  com- 
bines many  factors  to  make  the  man.  He  be- 
longs to  a  family  which  for  generations  has  been 
an  ornament  to  the  Thespian  world. 

The  great-grandfather,  Thomas  Jefferson, 
was  an  eminent  comedian  and  manager  far  back 
in  the  eighteenth  century  in  both  London  and 
the  then  fashionable  resort  of  Richmond  on  the 
Thames.  The  grandfather,  Joseph  Jefferson  I., 
brought  his  laurels  across  the  ocean  and  gave  to 
the  United  States  some  of  its  earliest  and  best 
[269] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

lessons  in  the  traditions  of  the  stage.  The 
son,  Joseph  Jefferson  II.,  artist,  actor,  and 
manager,  who  was  born  in  Philadelphia  in 
1804,  and  died  in  Mobile,  1842,  displayed  well- 
developed  talent  in  all  three  fields  ;  while  Joseph 
Jefferson  III.,  the  culmination  of  the  family 
line,  not  alone  inherited  these  ancestral  gifts, 
but  brought  them  to  a  flower  whose  beauty  is  a 
household  word  throughout  the  civilized  world. 
He  was  born  in  Philadelphia  in  1829,  and  made 
his  debut  at  the  age  of  three,  in  the  stirring  old- 
fashioned  drama  of  cc  Pizarro. " 

The  first  part  of  his  life  seems  to  have  been 
preparatory.  It  was  a  school  in  which  adver- 
sity and  hard  work  were  the  two  chief  profes- 
sors. Not  until  he  was  twenty-nine  years  of 
age  did  he  rise  into  prominence  of  any  sort. 
He  was  regarded  as  a  pleasant,  capable,  and 
rather  original  man,  and  was  loved,  not  for  his 
professional  work,  but  for  the  charms  of  his 
character. 

In  1858  he  appeared  at  Miss  Laura  Keene's 
theatre  in  New  York  as  Asa  Trenchard,  in 
"  Our  American  Cousin."  His  portrayal 
aroused  universal  interest  and  surprise.  He 
broke  away  from  the  traditions  of  the  times 
and  presented  a  new  school  of  dramatic  work. 
[270] 


Joseph  Jefferson,  America  s  First  Actor 

At  that  period  acting  was  more  mechanical 
than  at  the  present  day,  and  after  a  player  was 
once  presented,  each  subsequent  performance 
was,  as  far  as  could  be  made,  a  stereotype  of 
the  first.  Actors  prided  themselves  on  being 
able  to  reproduce  poses,  inflections,  and  even 
the  minutest  gestures  and  gesticulations,  no 
matter  how  long  the  run  of  a  play.  It  was, 
therefore,  to  the  wonderment  of  both  players 
and  playgoers  that  Mr.  Jefferson  introduced  a 
naturalness  which  made  his  performance  vary, 
within  limits,  from  night  to  night.  As  his 
moods  changed,  he  would  evolve  and  add  some 
new  and  picturesque  detail  to  his  work,  so  that, 
as  the  run  continued,  his  role  became  more  and 
more  impressive  and  artistic.  At  first,  opposi- 
tion was  manifested  by  conservative  critics,  but 
this  soon  vanished  in  the  flood  of  approbation 
which  came  from  every  direction.  The  piece 
ran  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  nights,  which 
was  a  phenomenal  success  for  those  days,  and 
was  followed  by  a  number  of  dramas  in  which 
Mr.  Jefferson  displayed  equal  brilliancy. 

In  1859,  wnen  thirty  years  of  age,  he  made 

his  bow  as  Rip  Van  Winkle,  little  dreaming  that 

he  was  about  to  add  to  the   history  of  the  stage 

one  of  its  most  beautiful  characters.      The  play 

[271] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

was  not  new,  no  less  than  four  different  versions 
of  Washington  Irving's  matchless  legend  hav- 
ing already  been  placed  upon  the  boards.  Mr. 
Jefferson's  piece  was  drawn  from  two,  if  not 
three,  of  these,  and  was  a  marked  improvement 
upon  its  predecessors.  It  had  a  moderate  suc- 
cess, and,  according  to  himself,  gave  him  min- 
gled delight  and  disappointment.  Some  time 
afterwards  he  met  Dion  Boucicault  in  London, 
and  engaged  the  latter  to  make  still  another  ver- 
sion. Boucicault,  who  was  a  peerless  artist  at 
adapting,  evolved  a  play  which  united  the  best 
features  of  the  versions  by  Yates,  Joseph  Jeffer- 
son II.,  Hackett,  Burke,  and  Joseph  Jefferson 
III.  This  was  in  1864.  The  Boucicault  version 
was  subsequently  amended  and  improved  by  Mr. 
Jefferson,  but  may  be  said  to  have  reached  its 
final  crystallized  stage  in  1869,  since  which  time 
it  has  been  one  of  the  dramatic  masterpieces  of 
the  world,  and  has  probably  been  seen  by  more 
auditors  than  any  other  play  upon  the  American 
boards. 

The  inspiration  of  the  actor  to  interpret  Rip 
Van  Winkle  came  from  a  curious  coincidence. 
In  the  summer  of  1859,  wn^e  rusticating  in  the 
Catskills,  Mr.  Jefferson  happened  to  read  "  The 
Life  and  Letters  of  Washington  Irving. ' '  Here, 
[272] 


Thomas  Jefferson^  America's  First  Actor 

to  his  surprise,  he  says,  he  found  a  pleasant  allu- 
sion to  himself,  in  which  Washington  Irving 
referred  to  his  striking  resemblance  to  his  father, 
Joseph  Jefferson  II.  At  that  time  Washington 
Irving  was  the  uncrowned  king  of  American 
literature,  and  was  dying  of  old  age.  The  pride 
of  being  noticed  by  the  author,  the  pathos  which 
surrounds  a  deathbed,  the  dreamy  atmosphere 
of  the  Catskills,  and  the  memory  of  his  father's 
portrayal  of  Rip  Van  Winkle,  united  to  form 
a  picture  in  the  young  actor's  mind  which  was 
to  shape  all  his  after  life. 

Since  1869  Mr.  Jefferson  has  been  Rip  Van 
Winkle.  Now  and  then  he  has  given  other 
characters,  as  if  to  show  his  wondrous  versatil- 
ity, but  he  will  always  be  identified  in  the  public 
heart  with  the  lovable  hero  of  the  Catskills. 

The  secret  of  his  success  lies  partly  in  the 
poetry  of  the  man's  soul  and  in  his  strong  spir- 
itual nature.  He  would  have  made  a  similar 
success  out  of  any  part,  Rip  Van  Winkle  having 
been  merely  the  framework  on  which  the  actor 
spread  the  garments  of  his  own  soul.  In  all  of 
his  roles  there  has  been  the  same  delicate,  and 
at  times  fantastic,  embroidery  of  the  fancy,  the 
affections,  and  that  quaint  wit  and  humor  which 
mark  the  highest  development  of  the  human 
18  [  273  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

intellect.  In  his  art  there  is  a  singular  ability 
to  realize  ideals.  He  formulates  emotions  and 
converts  them  into  tableaux.  The  art  is  invis- 
ible, so  skilfully  is  it  concealed,  and  the  per- 
formance seems  merely  a  tale  that  is  faultlessly 
told ;  but  it  is  really  a  gallery  of  pictures,  as  per- 
fect in  color,  perspective,  and  composition  as 
any  canvas  by  the  greatest  master  painters  of 
all  time. 

These  characteristics  are  not  professional,  but 
personal.  They  are  the  warp  and  woof  of  the 
man's  being.  They  are  as  much  marked  in 
his  private  life  as  when  for  the  time  being  he  is 
Rip  Van  Winkle;  Bob  Acres;  Asa  Trenchard; 
Newman  Noggs,  in  "Nicholas  Nickleby  ";  Caleb 
Plummer^  in  cc  The  Cricket  on  the  Hearth"  ; 
Dr.  Ollapod  in  "The  Poor  Gentleman";  or 
Dr.  Pangloss^  in  "The  Heir-at-Law. "  Their 
practical  fruitage  is  in  painting,  nature  study, 
literary  work,  boundless  hospitality,  and  good- 
fellowship. 

His  homes  are  merely  foci  from  which  emanate 
the  beams  of  kindliness  and  culture.  One  is 
his  residence,  "Crow's  Nest,"  on  Buzzard's 
Bay,  and  the  other  a  wide-verandaed  colonial 
villa  at  Palm  Beach,  Florida.  Each  is  in  sight 
of  the  sea,  and  each  has  for  a  background  a 
[274] 


Thomas  Jefferson,  America  s  First  Actor 

magnificent  landscape  where  nature  has  bestowed 
arboreal  beauty  with  lavish  hand. 

The  cc Crow's  Nest"  may  be  regarded  as  the 
home  of  Rip  Van  Winkle,  while  the  Palm  Beach 
residence  may  be  viewed  as  the  studio  of  the 
artist  and  the  den  of  the  fisherman.  The 
"  Crow's  Nest  "  is  the  more  characteristic  of 
the  two.  It  is  a  delightful,  rambling  structure, 
whose  first  story  is  built  in  rubble  and  cobble- 
stones, covered  with  vines  and  flowers.  The 
second  story  is  of  wood,  shingled  so  as  to  look 
like  an  ancient  coat  of  mail.  Over  this  rises  a 
mighty  garret,  with  dormer  windows  and  quaint 
chimneys,  which  would  attract  every  little  boy 
and  girl  as  an  ideal  playroom.  One  chimney 
commemorates  Rip  Van  Winkle's  last  drink, 
the  outside  being  inlaid  with  beer  bottles,  with 
their  necks  upward,  which  in  the  morning  and 
evening  reflect  the  sun  and  recall  the  memory 
of  the  poor  vagabond  of  the  Catskills. 

A  colonial  piazza;  a  large,  hospitable  en- 
trance, and  huge,  vast  windows  which  let  in 
unlimited  light  and  air,  tell  a  story  of  the  rest, 
health,  and  comfort  within.  The  front  door  is 
of  stained  glass,  and  opens  into  a  large  hall,  on 
whose  sides  hang  the  portraits  of  many  celebri- 
ties in  the  world  of  the  stage  and  letters.  A 
[275] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

dining-room,  almost  baronial  in  size,  is  equipped 
with  heavy,  old-fashioned  furniture  and  decorated 
with  quaint  pottery,  steins,  and  mediaeval  drink- 
ing vessels.  The  ceilings  are  inlaid  with  old  Dres- 
den, while  tapestries  and  mediaeval  upholstery 
give  the  place  a  happy  atmosphere  of  long  ago. 

The  parlor  is  an  art  gallery,  the  walls  being 
covered  with  paintings  by  distinguished  artists, 
among  whom  the  actor  himself  may  justly  be 
enumerated.  Had  Mr.  Jefferson  never  gone 
upon  the  stage,  he  would  undoubtedly  have  been 
a  painter  of  rare  achievement.  His  life  is  sin- 
gularly domestic  and  calm.  He  loves  to  read 
and  to  jot  down  his  impressions,  to  paint  and 
to  gather  material  for  pictures  by  sketching,  to 
walk  and  garden,  to  fish  and  to  sail,  to  enter- 
tain friends  and  be  entertained,  to  extend  hos- 
pitality, and  to  enter  into  the  joys  of  all  those 
around  him.  It  is  a  rare  mind  which  in  its 
seventh  decade  can  talk  on  high  art  to  a  great 
painter,  statesmanship  to  a  President,  literature 
to  a  cultured  woman,  and  at  the  same  moment 
amuse  two  or  three  little  children,  without  in- 
terfering with  other  trains  of  thought. 

The  roll  of  guests  of  the   "Crow's  Nest" 
would  fill  a  large  volume.    One  of  the  chambers 
is  known  as    Mrs.  Cleveland's  room   from  its 
[276] 


Joseph  Jefferson,  America  s  First  Actor 

having  been  tenanted  by  the  wife  of  ex-President 
Grover  Cleveland,  and  every  other  chamber  is 
associated  with  the  names  of  famous  actors, 
poets,  playwrights,  statesmen,  financiers,  mer- 
chants, artists,  and  musicians. 

No  man  has  broader  sympathies  nor  appre- 
ciates better  the  development  of  the  intellect  in 
each  and  every  field  than  Mr.  Jefferson.  Cul- 
tured to  a  rare  degree,  thoroughly  in  touch  with 
current  events,  interested  in  all  the  great  move- 
ments of  the  age,  he  has,  most  noteworthy  of 
all,  the  gift  of  sitting  in  judgment  and  keeping 
the  adjudication  to  himself.  The  sweetness  of 
the  man's  character  was  never  better  expressed 
than  not  long  ago,  when  a  writer  asked  him, 
4  c  Whom  do  you  count  among  our  best  actors 
and  actresses  ?  ' '  and  he  replied : 

"  On  that  point  I  must  claim  the  right  to 
silence.  There  are  many  fine  players  upon  the 
stage  whom  it  would  give  me  pleasure  to  name ; 
but  in  so  doing,  I  should  tacitly  condemn  others. 
While  we  have  a  full  right  to  our  opinions  and 
the  expression  of  them  in  private  conversation, 
we  hold  it  a  breach  of  courtesy  to  publish  our 
verdicts  on  our  professional  comrades." 

What  more  exquisite  bit  of  courtly  tenderness 
could  be  conceived ! 

[277] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

Nor  should  it  ever  be  forgotten  that  the  player's 
life  has  been  devoted  to  philanthropic  effort. 
He,  perhaps  more  than  any  other  Thespian,  has 
endeared  his  calling  to  the  American  heart.  He 
has  gone  out  of  his  way  to  speak  and  write  for 
others,  to  address  clubs,  societies,  schools,  and 
universities,  and  to  uphold  the  cause  of  high 
ideals   upon  the    stage   and    in   private   life. 

When  Rev.  Dr.  Sabine,  of  New  York,  re- 
fused to  perform  the  service  of  the  dead  over  the 
body  of  the  gifted  George  Holland  because  the 
latter  had  been  an  actor,  and  referred  the  com- 
mittee contemptuously  cc  to  some  little  church 
around  the  corner,  where  they  do  such  things," 
Joseph  Jefferson  said,  "  God  will  bless  that 
little  church  around  the  corner ' '  \  and  this  re- 
christening  of  the  Church  of  the  Transfiguration 
verified  the  prediction  which  it  contained. 

"The  little  church  around  the  corner  "  has 
now  a  world-wide  celebrity,  while  of  the  sanc- 
timonious Sabine  naught  is  remembered  but 
his   unchristian   action. 

When  the  incident  was  related  to  a  famous 
New  York  wit,  he  said : 

cc  Bravo  for  Jefferson!  The  best  sermons  I 
have  ever  heard  are  the  addresses  he  makes  in 
his  leisure  hours." 

[278] 


Joseph  Jefferson,  America  s  First  Actor 

Mr.  Jefferson  may  be  regarded  as  the  exponent 
of  naturalism  rather  than  realism  upon  the  stage. 
Beneath  the  naturalism  there  runs  what  may  be 
termed  a  symbolism  or  suggestiveness. 

"  Scenery,"  he  said,  "should  be  accurate, 
beautiful,  and  as  natural  as  possible.  The  same 
principle  should  apply  to  the  actor.  I  do  not 
mean  that  he  should  carry  naturalness  to  an 
extreme  in  his  work,  but  merely  that  his  art 
should  make  him  appear  to  be  natural  to  the 
audience. 

"  Absolute  realism  is  but  rudimentary  art, 
because  it  leaves  nothing  to  the  imagination  and 
nothing  to  the  poetic  impulses  which  inhere  in 
every  healthy  heart.  The  aim  of  the  player 
should  be  to  appeal  through  the  eyes  and  ears  of 
his  auditors  to  both  the  intellect  and  that  subtler 
sense  which  builds  its  own  pictures  and  raises 
its  own  ideals." 


[279] 


Otis  Skinner 
In  Town  and  Woodland 


XXI 

Otis  Skinner 
In  Town  and  Woodland 

IF  character  is  affected  by  early  associations, 
the  tastes  and  career  of  Otis  Skinner  re- 
flect the  influence  of  Harvard  University. 
He  was  born  and  raised  in  Cambridge,  Massa- 
chusetts, a  place  identified  in  the  American  mind 
with  the  classic  fame  and  broad  culture  of  that 
institution  of  learning.  His  stage  history,  varied 
and  successful  as  it  has  been,  represents  what 
may  be  termed  the  classical  historic  and  romantic 
tendencies  of  the  modern  theatre. 

His  home  life  is  in  keeping  with  his  early 
antecedents  and  his  career  upon  the  boards. 
Liking  to  be  in  touch  with  both  the  centres  of 
civilization  and  the  very  heart  of  nature,  he  has 
two  domiciles ;  one  in  New  York,  and  the  other 
at  Twin  Lake,  Wisconsin.  The  former  is  in 
a  fashionable  neighborhood  in  West  Fifty-fifth 
Street,  where  the  architect  and  builder  have  added 
to  the  metropolis  a  settlement  notable  for  its 
artistic  beauty  and  wealth.  His  home  impresses 
[283] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

the  eye  with  a  sense  of  simplicity,  studiousness, 
and  culture.  While  it  is  artistic,  the  art  is  sub- 
ordinated to  a  strong  purpose;  while  it  is  liter- 
ary, the  love  for  books  is  not  obtrusive ;  while  it 
is  richly  furnished,  there  is  no  ostentation;  but 
merely  a  successful  attempt  to  obtain  the  highest 
comfort  possible. 

It  is  the  practical  embodiment  of  the  man 
who  has  consecrated  himself  to  his  profession, 
and  who,  while  enjoying  all  the  graces  and 
pleasures  of  life,  compels  them  to  play  secondary 
places  in  the  drama  of  his  own  existence.  There 
are  no  evidences  of  fads  or  hobbies;  the  numer- 
ous works  of  art  about  the  premises  are  selected 
with  reference  to  their  beauty,  and  not  to  illus- 
trate any  theory  or  to  gratify  the  wishes  of  the 
collector.  His  paintings  and  engravings  are 
well  chosen,  and  display  the  variety  which  is  re- 
quired to  give  satisfaction  to  the  critical  eye. 
If  they  have  any  special  feature,  it  is  a  tendency 
toward  the  Rembrandt  school  of  art  and  its  im- 
mediate successors  in  the  Low  Countries.  The 
bric-a-brac  are  apparently  the  results  of  a  man 
of  taste  purchasing  here,  there,  and  everywhere, 
and  do  not  produce  the  effect  of  having  been 
gathered  in  a  single  transaction  at  a  curiosity 
shop.  Each  has  an  individuality,  and  seems  to 
[284] 


Otis  Skinner 

have  won  the  fancy  of  its  owner  upon  its  own 
merits. 

Striking-looking  lamps  and  lanterns ;  odd, 
old-fashioned  mirrors ;  rich,  soft  rugs ;  substantial 
and  symmetric  furniture,  carry  out  the  impres- 
sion of  the  paintings  and  works  of  glyptic  art. 
The  ensemble  marks  a  strong  personality,  and 
hints  at  an  owner  whose  horizons  have  been 
broadened  by  education,  travel,  and  study,  and 
whose  perceptions  have  been  trained  in  the 
schools  of  experience.  The  harmony  and  the 
balance  of  everything  are  the  keynote  of  his 
nature. 

"I  have  a  theory,"  he  said,  "  that  in  art, 
harmonic  proportion  is  the  most  important  law; 
whether  it  be  in  painting  or  in  the  drama  the  rule 
is  the  same.  From  a  poet's  point  of  view,  a 
drama  is  a  series  of  paintings  transferred  to  the 
boards,  and  a  painting  is  a  dramatic  event  trans- 
ferred and  fixed  to  canvas.  The  works  of  the 
masters  of  the  brush  seldom  employ  the  brightest 
tints  or  contrasts  of  a  violent  sort,  but  rely  upon 
relation  and  correlation  to  obtain  the  desired 
effect.  Beyond  this  there  is  a  certain  symbol- 
ism whereby  pictorial  suggestions  convey  a  larger 
spiritual  fact  than  the  one  expressed  to  the  eye. 
In  playing,  it  is  not  the  delineation  of  fierce 
[285] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

passion  in  strongly  accentuated  manner  that 
gives  the  best  results,  but  the  portrayal  of  a 
character  by  a  thousand  and  one  gradations. 
Beyond  this,  also,  is  that  higher  law  which 
makes  the  accurate  depiction  of  the  individual 
the  exposition  of  a  type,  a  class,  a  race,  or  a 
period  in  the  world's  history." 

The  general  coloring  of  the  apartments  is  in 
olive.  In  the  drawing-room  a  warmer  tone  is 
produced  by  rugs,  ornaments,  curtains,  and 
hangings,  while  in  the  library  the  opposite  effect 
results  from  a  similar  artifice.  The  variation  is 
small,  and,  at  first  sight,  imperceptible  ;  but  it 
influences  the  mind  of  the  spectator,  and  super- 
induces moods  congenial  and  appropriate  to  the 
rooms  where  they  are  produced.  The  library 
is  of  medium  size,  and  the  books  substantially 
bound  and  judiciously  selected.  Its  tone  is 
intellectual  and  even  learned  ;  the  works  of 
reference  and  the  volumes  of  standard  literature 
outnumbering  those  belonging  to  a  lighter  vein. 

"  My  books  represent  my  past  as  well  as  my 
present,"  said  my  host.  "  I  was  raised  by  my 
father,  who  was  a  clergyman,  and  after  a  brief 
commercial  experience  took  up  a  dramatic  career. 
Many  of  the  lines  of  thought  started  in  my 
youth  have  continued  through  the  years.  There 
[286] 


Otis  Skinner 

is  a  popular  delusion  that  ethical  historical  read- 
ing is  very  dry  and  soporific.  Much  of  it  is ;  and 
perhaps  that  fact  may  have  influenced  my  liter- 
ary tastes.  It  is  impossible  to  understand  the 
stage  as  an  entity  without  knowing  history,  the 
struggles  between  great  social  forces,  the  clash- 
ing of  races,  and  the  evolution  of  ideas  and  in- 
stitutions. For  an  actor  to  take  up  some  new 
historical  part  involves  learning  all  the  facts  of 
the  period  in  which  that  part  is  played. ' ' 

Mr.  Skinner's  country  home  is  on  the  bor- 
ders of  Twin  Lake,  in  the  Wisconsin  woods, 
and  is  fitted  up  in  yellow  pine,  in  the  style  that 
has  lately  become  popular  on  the  Atlantic  coast. 
There  is  no  paint  or  plaster  to  suggest  a  city 
house,  and  the  resinous  elements  of  the  wood 
exhale  a  mild,  pleasant,  and  health-giving  odor, 
that  seems  a  part  of  the  forest  air  without. 
Here  the  histrion  devotes  himself  to  reading, 
to  studying,  and  to  nature. 

4  c  Thanks  to  my  brother,  Charles  M.  Skin- 
ner, who  is  deeply  interested  in  the  nature  sci- 
ences," said  the  player,  "  I  was  initiated  into 
this  odd,  but  pleasant,  field  of  thought,  that  cov- 
ers the  animal  and  vegetable  life  of  the  wilder- 
ness. Don't  suppose  that  I  am  a  botanist,  an 
entomologist,  or  a  geologist ;  I  simply  love  out- 
[287] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

door  life,  and  I  try  to  know  every  tree,  bush, 
and  living  creature  which  is  my   neighbor. 

"I  pass  as  much  time  as  possible  in  the 
open,  and  what  with  exercise  and  work,  long 
walks  and  rambles  through  the  thickets,  I  build 
up  enough  strength  to  meet  any  emergency. 
There  is  good  fishing  in  these  woods,  and  they 
are  a  step  nearer  to  the  primitive  forest  of  the 
American  Continent  than  either  the  Adiron- 
dacks  or  the  moose   runs  of  Maine." 

Mr.  Skinner  began  his  professional  career  in 
Wood's  Museum,  Philadelphia,  under  the  man- 
agement of  William  Davidge,  Jr.  From  that 
time  on  he  has  been  constantly  in  the  public 
eye.  He  has  supported  such  actors  as  John  T. 
Raymond,  Mme.  Janauschek,  Edwin  Booth, 
Lawrence  Barrett,  John  McCullough,  Mary 
Anderson,  William  E.  Sheridan,  Joseph  Jeffer- 
son, and  Mme.  Modjeska. 

Among  his  best  performances  may  be  men- 
tioned his  work  in  cc Julius  Caesar,"  "Yor- 
ick's  Love,"  "  Francesca  da  Rimini,"  "  Ham- 
let," "Othello,"  "Macbeth,"  "  Mary  Stuart, " 
"As  You  Like  It,"  "Camille,"  "Magda," 
"His  Grace  de  Grammont,"  "The  King's 
Jester,"  "Villon  the  Vagabond,"  and  "Rosem- 
ary." 

[288] 


Otis  Skinner 

Two  of  these  parts  were  notable  for  their 
historical  and  artistic  beauty.  These  were  in 
"The  King's  Jester,"  and  "Villon  the  Vaga- 
bond," written  by  Charles  M.  Skinner,  the 
actor's  brother,  before  mentioned.  In  these, 
the  player  evinced  a  knowledge  of  the  French 
Middle  Ages  of  singular  accuracy  and  thorough- 
ness. This  was  shown  not  only  in  the  cos- 
tuming, but  in  the  manners,  weapons,  and  other 
special  features  of  the  period  of  the  play.  In 
this  respect  he  betrayed  undoubtedly  the  influ- 
ence of  Edwin  Booth,  but  added  to  it  a  famil- 
iarity with  the  subject  which  received  the  praise 
of  all  careful  critics. 

While  Mr.  Skinner  is  an  actor  of  rare  versa- 
tility and  power,  his  natural  bent  seems  to  be 
toward  Shakespeare  and  the  Elizabethan  drama. 
In  this  field  he  has  done  his  best  work,  and 
since  the  death  of  Booth,  Barrett,  and  McCul- 
lough,  he  is  unquestionably  the  first  all-round 
Shakespearean  actor  of  the  American  stage. 
The  singular  compass  of  his  talent  may  be  esti- 
mated from  the  fact  that  his  Orlando,  Hamlet, 
Romeo,  Shy  lock,  Cassio,  Gratiano,  and  Othello, 
have  each  been  proclaimed  by  profession  and 
press  as   being  faultless   impersonations. 

Just  before  I  called  upon  him  in  his  New 
19  [  289  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

York  home,  he  had  witnessed  a  performance  of 
a  Maeterlinck  drama,  and,  in  commenting  upon 
it,  said: 

"  It  is  enjoyable  on  account  of  the  drama- 
tist's talent,  and  because  it  belongs  to  a  school 
of  dramatic  thought  which  now  enjoys  consid- 
erable vogue.  But  its  very  excellences  make 
me  yearn  for  the  pure  atmosphere,  the  grander 
conceptions,  and  the  truer  emotions  of  the 
Shakespearean  play.  In  the  latter  there  is 
always  an  air  of  poetry  and  a  clear  picture  of 
life  and  character  ;  but  around  it  is  wound  an 
ideality  which  converts  the  poorest  personage 
in  the  play  into  a  creation  of  beauty.  A  play 
is,  at  the  best,  a  symbol  in  which  weeks  or  even 
years  are  compressed  into  a  few  hours.  A  close 
realism  is  incongruous,  because  it  is  incompat- 
ible with  symbolism.  For  this  reason  I  prefer 
the  dramas  of  Shakespeare  to  those  of  Maeter- 
linck and  all  the  other  playwrights  of  this 
class." 


[290] 


William    H.    Crane 
And  His  "Fishing-Box" 


s? 


XXII 

William    H.    Crane 
And  His  "Fishing-Box" 

ONE  of  the  prettiest  New  England 
towns  is  Cohasset,  on  the  eastern 
coast  of  Massachusetts.  Its  prox- 
imity to  Boston  renders  it  almost  a  suburb  of  the 
cc  Hub  of  the  Universe."  Yet  it  is  far  enough 
away  to  preserve  it  from  the  turmoil  of  the  busy 
city  and  to  keep  intact  the  picturesque  beauty 
of  the  landscape.  Art  has  aided  nature  in 
making  the  place  attractive.  Fine  macadamized 
roads  appeal  to  pedestrian  and  equestrian  alike. 
Well-kept  lawns  and  flower  gardens,  vine-clad 
cottages  and  towering  trees,  rich  orchards  and 
kitchen  farms,  evidence  a  prosperous  and  intel- 
ligent community.  Well-drained  fields  and  sub- 
stantial fences  and  walls,  handsome  residences 
and  sightly  barns  and  stables,  betray  the  thrifty 
New  England  spirit. 

On  one  of  the  leading  thoroughfares  of  Co- 

hasset  is  a  tract  of  land  as  large  as  an  ordinary 

city  block.      Where  it  abuts  upon  the  road  it 

is  faced  by  a  low  but  massive  stone  wall,  over 

[293] 


Eminent  Actors  in  ^heir  Homes 

which  vines  droop  in  irregular,  waving  lines, 
like  a  rich  green  robe.  The  larger  part  of  the 
tract  is  a  noble  lawn,  rolled  and  mowed  until  it 
looks  like  a  velvet  carpet.  It  is  large  enough 
to  be  the  playground  of  a  hundred  children,  and 
in  clear  summer  days  is  often  put  to  that  use 
by  the  juvenile  friends  and  neighbors  of  the 
owner. 

This  is  the  c  c  Fishing-Box  "  of  William  H. 
Crane,  one  of  the  chief  comedians  of  the  Eng- 
lish-speaking stage.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  a 
vast  residence,  containing  not  less  than  twenty- 
four  rooms.  The  name,  or  nickname,  tells  a 
pleasant  story  of  the  past.  More  than  twenty 
years  ago,  when  Mr.  Crane  was  starting  on  his 
career,  he  visited  Cohasset,  which  was  the  home 
of  several  friends,  and  fell  in  love  with  its 
scenery  and  climate. 

"All  that  I  need,"  he  said,  "to  make  me 
happy  is  to  have  a  little  place  here — a  fishing- 
box.  "  And  erelong  he  found  a  tiny  cottage 
which  met  with  his  hearty  approval.  Year  after 
year  he  added  an  addition  or  extension  to  it, 
but  kept  up  the  first  name  he  had  given  it. 
Broad  piazzas  transformed  it  into  a  villa,  and 
finally  it  became  one  of  the  sights  of  the  town. 
But  it  was  still  his  "Fishing-Box,"  and  that 
[294] 


William  H.  Crane 

will  probably  be  its  favorite  title  as  long  as  he 
lives. 

Mr.  Crane  is  a  generous  entertainer,  and 
during  the  summer  his  place  is  filled  with 
guests.  Among  them  are  many  members  of 
the  profession  and  men  distinguished  in  the 
world  of  letters.  Probably  most  of  the  eminent 
Thespians  of  the  country  have  been  included 
among  his  guests,  of  whom  the  most  notable 
were  Edwin  Booth  and  Lawrence  Barrett. 
Upon  the  wide  verandas,  shaded  by  deep  awn- 
ings and  vine-clad  railings,  they  have  sat  chat- 
ting and  smoking,  surrounded  by  a  circle  of 
kindred  spirits.  Here  Booth  was  seen  at  his 
best.  Beneath  the  dignity  and  culture  of  the 
great  actor  was  an  inexhaustible  store  of  quiet 
fun  and  droll  anecdote  with  which  he  held  his 
audiences  by  the  hour.  Barrett  was  a  fine  con- 
versationalist, but  tended  more  toward  polemical 
thought  than  to  the  speech  of  lighter  vein. 

The  host  and  guests  at  the  "  Fishing-Box" 
spent  much  of  their  time  upon  the  water. 

The  actor's  yachting  career  maybe  compared 
to  the  building  of  his  home.  He  made  his 
debut  in  the  nautical  world  as  master  of  a  small 
sail-boat.  This  was  followed  by  a  larger  craft, 
which  in  turn  gave  way  to  a  handsome  yacht, 
[295] 


Eminent  Actors  in  ^heir  Homes 

the  "Vif."  A  fifty-foot  launch  was  next  in 
order,  which  was  dethroned  in  time  by  a  larger 
and  swifter  vessel,  "The  Senator."  He  has 
not  lost  his  love  for  roughing  it  upon  the  deep, 
and,  in  addition  to  his  larger  vessels,  has  always 
a  stout  knock-about  or  other  substantial  sailing 
vessel  fitted  to  encounter  the  rough  seas  which 
are  found  around  Minot's  Ledge.  It  may  be 
owing  to  his  skill,  or,  as  his  friends  suggest,  his 
personal  worth  \  but,  at  any  rate,  the  Hull  Yacht 
Club,  a  large  organization  in  that  part  of  Massa- 
chusetts, has  made  him  its  Commodore,  and 
the  Commodore's  flag  flies  from  the  main  peak 
of  his  steam  yacht. 

cc  I  suppose,"  said  Mr.  Crane,  "that  some 
ancestor  of  mine  was  a  sad  sea-dog,  and  that  in 
me  his  characteristics  crop  out  again.  I  love 
blue  water,  and,  like  every  other  nautical  per- 
sonage, I  extol  the  health-giving  atmosphere  of 
the  deep.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  atmosphere 
has  very  little  to  do  with  it.  I  like  it  for  itself, 
irrespective  of  myself.  There  is  no  better  place 
to  dream  than  on  the  deck  of  a  stanch  craft 
when  the  wind  is  just  enough  to  keep  the  boat 
moving.  All  you  can  do  is  to  dream.  There 
is  nothing  else  to  be  done,  unless  it  be  to  whistle 
for  more  wind. 

[296] 


William  H.  Crane 

"It  is  impossible  to  be  in  the  midst  of  a 
gathering  of  yachts  without  thinking  of  the 
numberless  experiments  which  men  of  all  times 
and  ages  have  made  in  endeavoring  to  master 
the  sea.  In  the  waters  where  we  cruise  have 
passed  the  keels  of  warships,  such  as  the  c  Guer- 
riere  '  and  c  Constitution  '  \  still  farther  back, 
the  fleets  of  the  British  and  the  French  in  the 
Revolution  ;  and,  in  far  earlier  years,  the  clumsy 
half-moons  and  the  caravels  of  England,  Hol- 
land, France,  and  Spain.  Not  far  from  our 
place  the  good  old  c  Mayflower '  must  have 
tacked  to  and  fro,  and  before  her  arrival  the 
only  craft  were  the  canoes  and  war  canoes  of 
the  Redmen.  It  is  quite  a  long  jump,  isn't  it, 
from  the  birch-bark  boat  of  the  Redskin  to  the 
gasoline  and  electric  launch  of  the  twentieth 
century  ?  " 

The  interior  of  the  house  is  exceedingly 
cheerful.  It  suggests  an  old  colonial  homestead. 
Broad  halls  and  stairs,  wide  doors  and  roomy 
window  spaces,  quaint  and  antique  furniture,  a 
multiplicity  of  books,  paintings  of  all  sorts  of 
agreeable  objects  on  the  walls,  rich  colors  and 
artistic  upholstery,  suggest  in  a  vague  way  the 
days  of  Endicott  and  Winthrop. 

"Only  a  man,"  said  Mr.  Crane,  "who  is 
[297] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

away  eight  or  nine  months  of  the  year,  working 
strenuously  in  the  dramatic  profession,  can  appre- 
ciate the  pleasure  and  comfort  of  a  home.  The 
moment  the  spring  calls  the  leaves  out  upon  the 
trees,  I  begin  to  yearn  for  Cohasset  ;  and  when 
the  season  closes,  I  am  but  too  happy  to  say 
good-by  to  grease  paint  and  the  hare's  foot,  and 
make  a  bee-line  for  the  Massachusetts  coast. ' ' 

The  actor  is  more  than  domestic;  he  wants 
to  inculcate  domesticity  in  his  friends.  His 
idea  of  a  man's  house  is  that  it  should  possess 
not  only  the  attractions  of  an  ordinary  home, 
but  also  of  the  club  and  other  places  which 
fascinate  the  male  character. 

For  those  who  like  to  drive  about  the  country, 
he  has  an  admirable  stable  ;  for  the  nautically 
disposed,  his  navy  is  always  in  condition  ;  for 
the  weary  lounger,  his  broad  piazzas  offer  an 
ideal  haven  of  rest ;  while  for  friends  of  a  liter- 
ary turn,  a  large  and  up-to-date  library  is  there 
to  satisfy  any  taste.  His  own  life,  while  domes- 
tic, varies  with  the  progress  of  the  season.  The 
first  four  or  five  weeks  that  he  is  at  home  he 
forgets  all  his  professional  cares  and  duties,  and 
devotes  himself  to  recreation  pure  and  simple. 
Then,  as  the  days  grow  shorter,  hinting  in 
nature's  kindly  way  of  the  return  of  autumn 
[298] 


William  H.  Crane 

and  the  relighting  of  the  footlights,  he  sets  so 
many  hours  daily  to  study  and  preparation  for 
the  fall.  Oftentimes  he  practises  and  rehearses 
new  parts,  or  plans  out  the  production  of  new 
plays.  It  was  here  that  he  studied  the  titular 
character  of  Petrus  Stuyvesant^  in  the  drama  by 
Bronson  Howard  and  Brander  Matthews,  and 
the  halls  and  piazzas  echoed  to  the  thud  of  the 
wooden  leg  which  he  wore  in  enacting  that  role. 
He  limped  around  on  it  every  day  for  a  month, 
in  order  to  grow  accustomed  to  it,  and  many  are 
the  incidents  which  have  been  described  in  con- 
nection with  that  experiment.  Mr.  Crane  de- 
clares that  it  was  the  most  expensive  artificial 
leg  ever  worn,  as  it  cost  him  thirty  thousand 
dollars  to  find  out  that  the  public  did  not  want 
it.  Mrs.  Crane  says  that  the  career  of  that 
wooden  leg  was  one  long  line  of  devastation,  in 
which  mangled  carpets  and  Oriental  rugs,  per- 
forated lace  curtains,  fractured  furniture,  and 
an  unspeakable  amount  of  injury  to  patience 
and  Christian  calm  were  the  more  noticeable 
features. 

The  actor  has  no  warmer  friends  than  his 
neighbors,   which  is  almost  as  high  a  compli- 
ment as  it  is  when  a  man  is  said  to  be  a  hero 
to    his    valet.       The    popularity    is    deserved, 
[299] 


Eminent  Actors  in  T'beir  Homes 

because  in  his  civic  relations  he  is  a  person  of 
public  spirit  and  patriotic  temperament.  There 
is  a  pretty  little  church  at  Cohasset,  of  which 
the  comedian  has  for  some  time  been  a  stanch 
supporter.  When,  not  so  long  ago,  the  good 
people  of  the  town  determined  that  it  ought  to 
have  a  steeple,  but  found  that  the  money  was 
lacking,  it  was  Mr.  Crane  who  came  forward 
and  gave  an  entertainment  by  which  he  raised 
six  hundred  dollars  for  the  building  fund. 

Though  childless,  both  the  actor  and  his 
wife  have  a  warm  love  for  little  folks,  and  none 
receive  a  heartier  welcome  in  his  home.  No- 
ticing how  dull  the  days  were  for  his  child 
friends  when  the  weather  was  stormy,  Mr. 
Crane  built  a  child's  playhouse  upon  his  prem- 
ises which  is  still  a  wonder  in  Cohasset.  It  is 
known  as  the  "  Hotel  de  Doll  "  among  people 
with  a  poetic  turn,  and  as  the  " junior  men- 
agerie ' '  by  people  of  a  satirical  bias.  But  here 
have  been  given  some  of  the  weirdest  tea-par- 
ties that  were  ever  contrived  by  little  folks 
backed  by  a  good-natured  adult  to  help  them. 
It  is  hardly  needful  to  add  that  if  children  had 
votes,  the  Thespian  would  be  elected  to  every 
office  in  Cohasset. 

Mr.  Crane's  histrionic  life  has  been  very 
[300] 


William  H.  Crane 

prosperous,  he  being  rated  among  the  five  rich- 
est players  in  the  world.  For  at  least  twenty 
years  the  plays  in  which  he  has  appeared  have, 
with  a  single  exception,  been  pecuniary,  as 
well  as  artistic,  triumphs.  Among  his  notable 
impersonations  have  been  Dick  Swiveller ;  Colo- 
nel M.  T.  Elevator ,  in  "  Our  Boarding- 
House";  Le  Blanc ,  in  "  Evangeline  " ;  Dro- 
mio,  in  "The  Comedy  of  Errors";  Nicholas 
Vanalstyne,  in  "The  Henrietta";  Hon.  Han- 
nibal Rivers,  in  "The  Senator";  Benjamin 
Franklin  Lawton,  in  "The  American  Minis- 
ter"; John  Hackett,  in  "Brother  John"; 
"The  Head  of  the  Family,"  and  David 
Harum. 

He  is  intensely  American,  and  has  probably 
produced  more  American  dramas  and  portrayed 
more  American  character-types  than  any  other 
member  of  the  stage.  He  is  a  believer  in  the 
future  of  plays  based  upon  native  institutions 
and  historical  episodes,  and  to  him  the  history 
of  the  United  States,  the  mingling  of  races, 
and  the  intense  struggle  of  its  component  ele- 
ments, present  dramatic  possibilities  of  the  high- 
est value. 


[301] 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro 

Mistress  of  the  Court  Farm,  Broadway, 
Worcestershire 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro, 


XXIII 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro 

Mistress  of  the  Court  Farm,  Broadway , 
Worcestershire 


ENGLAND  has  long  been  the  home  of 
abdicated  queens.  Of  the  many  ex- 
monarchs  who  have  graced  her  shores, 
none  came  with  a  larger  army  of  friends  and 
admirers  than  Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro,  who 
for  fifteen  years  was  eminent  upon  the  boards 
of  both  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
With  singular  appropriateness  she  selected  for 
her  home  a  district  made  immortal  by  Stratford- 
on-Avon,  as  well  as  by  historical  associations 
which  reach  from  the  present  time  back  almost  to 
the  days  of  Boadicea  and  the  Romans.  The  very 
name  of  the  little  town  where  she  resides,  Broad- 
way, is  an  apparent  allusion  to  the  old  Roman 
military  road  which  ran  from  London  north- 
west to  Chester.  Not  far  away  is  the  ancient 
city  of  Worcester,  with  its  beautiful  cathedral, 
while  almost  visible  from  her  windows  is  Eves- 
ham, where  Simon  de  Montfort  went  down  in 
20  [  305  ] 


Eminent  Actors  in  'Their  Homes 

battle  while  struggling  to  preserve  the  intolera- 
ble feudal  rights  against  the  growing  power  of 
civilization  and  social  growth  as  represented  by 
the  Crown.  For  three  hundred  years  Worces- 
tershire has  been  famous  in  the  theatrical  world. 
Its  histrionic  capital,  Stratford,  is  the  Mecca  of 
the  members  of  the  stage,  while  the  roads  which 
run  through  its  quiet  valleys  and  over  its  rounded 
hills  have  been  trodden  by  long  generations  of 
players,  musicians,  and  sightseers  from  every 
land. 

Court  Farm,  the  home  of  Mme.  de  Navarro, 
is  a  typical  establishment  of  the  olden  time. 
Around  the  house  are  gardens  gay  with  flow- 
ers ;  fields  proverbial  for  their  fertility ;  orchards 
which  in  the  summer  are  laden  down  with  fruit; 
shady  groves  and  noble  trees  which  have  looked 
unmoved  upon  centuries.  The  climate  is  mild 
and  equable.  Worcestershire,  being  far  away 
from  the  coast  and  the  great  manufacturing  cen- 
tres, has  escaped  most  of  the  changing  forces  of 
modern  industrial  life,  and  preserves  the  features 
of  long  ago  with  delightful  fidelity. 

The  de  Navarro  home  is  a  manor-house  of 

the  old  school  such  as  is  never  built  to-day.    In 

form  it  represents  three  sides  of  a  rectangle,  of 

which  the  court,  or  open  space,  fronts  upon  the 

[306] 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro 

road.  It  is  shut  off  from  the  latter  by  a  neat 
iron  fence,  and  forms  a  picture  of  quaint  im- 
pressiveness.  In  the  olden  time  the  main  body 
of  the  house  was  tenanted  by  the  lord  of  the 
manor,  his  family,  relatives,  and  friends;  while 
the  extensions  on  either  side  were  employed  as 
barns  and  stables,  and  living  quarters  for  the 
field  hands.  In  the  courtyard  the  cows  and 
sheep  were  marshalled  in  the  morning  before 
they  were  driven  out  to  the  pasture,  and  here, 
in  the  evening,  the  cows  were  milked  by  the 
dairy  maids  ere  driven  into  their  stalls  for  the 
night.  The  windows  of  the  extensions  were 
doors  to  the  pigeons'  quarters,  while  one  of  the 
houses  was  devoted  to  the  barnyard  fowls  which 
were  so  conspicuous  a  feature  of  farm  life  and 
industry  in  the  ancient  years. 

It  is  all  changed  to-day.  The  courtyard  is 
practically  a  foyer  to  the  house,  as  neat  and 
trim  as  any  of  the  apartments  within  the  build- 
ing. Vines  and  flowers  trail  or  creep  upon  the 
walls,  while  the  slated  roofs  form  a  harmonious 
background  to  the  stone  work  beneath,  and  to 
the  green  leaves  and  gayly  tinted  blossoms.  The 
interior  of  the  manor-house  suggests  an  aristo- 
cratic inn  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Overhead 
are  massive  beams  dark  with  age  and  rich  with 
[307] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

the  colors  of  the  natural  wood;  strengthen- 
ing these  are  transverse  beams  which  might 
serve  as  the  mainmast  of  a  ninety-four  battle- 
ship. The  fireplace  in  the  library  is  almost  a 
room  in  itself,  and  the  settles  on  either  side  are 
large  enough  to  hold  five  or  six  persons  apiece. 
The  fireplace  in  the  dining-room  is  on  a  larger 
scale,  and  may  at  some  time  in  dead  years  have 
held  the  carcass  of  a  roasting  ox  or  a  half  dozen 
sheep,  turning  on  spits,  to  supply  food  for  a  vil- 
lage festival. 

The  furniture  is  a  pleasant  mixture  of  differ- 
ent schools  and  periods.  In  the  boudoir  are 
Louis  Quinze  chairs  and  richly  upholstered 
Voltaires,  which  invite  the  reader  to  wander 
from  this  world  into  the  land  of  dreams.  In 
the  dining-room  are  carved  chairs  and  tables 
representing  the  latest  designs  in  English  domes- 
tic art,  while  the  library  unites  the  substantial 
lines  and  surfaces  of  the  eighteenth  century 
with  the  graceful  finish  and  artistic  decoration 
of  the  present  day. 

In  every  room  there  is  ornament.  It  is  not 
lavish  in  amount,  but  is  selected  and  placed  with 
admirable  feeling.  Ten  pieces  of  fine  porcelain 
decorate  one  mantel,  and  eight  another.  A  few 
appear  here  and  there  upon  the  wall  surface, 
[308] 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro 

and  at  odd  intervals  are  pictures  of  various  kinds, 
ranging  from  small  engravings  and  photographs 
to  large  oil  paintings.  It  is  evident  that  the 
mistress  of  Court  Farm  loves  beauty,  but  is  en- 
grossed in  other  matters.  Her  life  is  that  of  an 
Englishwoman  belonging  to  the  landed  gentry. 
She  overlooks  her  estate,  attends  to  the  educa- 
tion of  her  children,  performs  the  social  duties 
incident  to  her  position,  drives  or  walks  about 
the  country,  plays  cards  in  the  evenings  with  her 
neighbors,  and  keeps  in  touch  with  her  profes- 
sional past  through  music,  reading  aloud,  and 
the  study  of  dramatic  and  contemporary  litera- 
ture. 

cc  After  the  endless  labor  of  a  busy  stage  life," 
said  Mme.  de  Navarro,  "the  strain  of  constant 
travel,  the  care  and  worry  of  new  plays  and 
characters,  the  ceaseless  excitement  which  marks 
existence  behind  the  footlights,  it  is  an  unspeak- 
able relief  and  joy  to  settle  down  in  a  quiet 
country  place  like  this,  and  lead  a  life  whose 
harmony  and  peace  can  hardly  be  described.  In 
the  beginning  of  my  stage  career  I  was  fasci- 
nated by  its  brilliancy,  and  took  delight  in  noth- 
ing outside  of  its  confines;  but  as  time  passed 
I  began  to  yearn  for  green  fields,  quietude, 
and  rest.  When  the  opportunity  finally  pre- 
[309] 


Eminent  Actors  in  Their  Homes 

sented  itself  of  retiring  from  the  boards  and 
entering  into  a  happy  Eden  of  my  own,  I  ac- 
cepted Fate's  kind  offer." 

Mary  Anderson  may  be  summed  up  as  a  stage 
meteor.  Born  in  1859,  sne  made  her  debut  as 
Juliet  1  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  and  sprang  into 
immediate  fame.  In  grace  and  beauty  she  was 
undoubtedly  as  near  to  ideal  womanhood  as  the 
present  century  has  seen.  Her  acting  at  first  was 
amateurish  and  weak;  but  it  improved  steadily, 
and  in  ten  years  had  become  so  excellent  as  to 
receive  the  praise  of  the  sternest  critics  in  her 
own  land,  England,  and  France.  Her  leading 
roles  were  Bianca,  in  " Fazio";  Juliet,  in 
" Romeo  and  Juliet";  Lady  Macbeth;  Parthe- 
nia,  in  "  Ingomar  "  ;  Berthe,  in  "  The  Daughter 
of  Roland";  Julia,  in  "The  Hunchback"; 
Pauline,  in  cc  The  Lady  of  Lyons  " ;  Meg  Mer- 
rilies,  in  "  Guy  Mannering " ;  Evadne,  in 
"Evadne  "  ;  Duchesse  de  Torrenueva,  in  cc  Faint 
Heart  Ne'er  Won  Fair  Lady";  Galatea,  in 
"  Pygmalion  and  Galatea,"  and  the  Countess  in 
"Love." 

From  the  beginning  of  her  professional  expe- 
rience she  exerted  a  singular  fascination  upon 
the  great  personalities  of  America,  France,  and 
England,  who  took  a  special  delight  in  aiding  her 
[310] 


Mary  Anderson  de  Navarro 

to  accomplish  her  ambitions.  Among  these 
were  General  Grant,  General  Sherman,  Thomas 
Bailey  Aldrich,  Cardinal  Manning,  Henry  W. 
Longfellow,  James  Russell  Lowell,  P.  T.  Bar- 
num,  William  Winter,  the  Princess  of  Wales 
(now  Queen  Alexandra),  Alma-Tadema,  Wilkie 
Collins,  Alfred  Lord  Tennyson,  Robert  Brown- 
ing, Mrs.  Kendall,  Henry  Irving,  Ellen  Terry, 
Mrs.  Humphry  Ward,  Edmund  Gosse,  Henry 
James,  Jenny  Lind,  Madame  Albani,  Aubrey 
de  Vere,  Lady  Martin,  Salvini,  Madame  Schu- 
mann, Ristori,  Dom  Pedro  III.,  Professor  Max 
Miiller,  Gladstone,  Laurence  Hutton,  Victor 
Hugo,  Bernhardt,  and  Cardinal  Newman. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  match  this  with  the 
social  triumph  of  any  other  professional.  In 
her  retirement  she  is  devoting  much  of  her  time 
to  musical  culture.  While  upon  the  stage  she 
had  a  dim  ambition  or  desire  to  become  a  finished 
musician,  and  was  often  advised  by  such  men  as 
Longfellow  and  Brignoli  to  undertake  that  ca- 
reer. Now  that  she  has  the  leisure  and  means, 
she  is  pursuing  the  study  of  the  art  with  as  much 
vigor  as  if  it  were  to  be  her  immediate  profession. 
With  her  it  is  art  for  art's  sake,  and  her  progress 
in  this  field  of  aesthetic  development  gives  no 
one  more  delight  than  it  does  herself. 
[3ii] 


Nat    C.    Goodwin — Maxine 

Elliott-  Goodwin 
^heir  Home  on  the  Old  Kent  Road 


^ 


Si 

<3 


■I 


XXIV 

Nat   C.    Goodwin — Maxine 

Elliott  -  Goodwin 
Their  Home  on  the  Old  Kent  Roaa 

WHAT  could  be  more  humorous  than 
a  typical  American  such  as  Nat  C. 
Goodwin  and  an  ideal  New  England 
girl  like  Maxine  Elliott  settling  down  for  the 
time  being  in  the  outskirts  of  London  and  be- 
coming semi-domesticated  Britons  !  It  is  thor- 
oughly in  touch  with  the  quaint  drollery  which 
has  made  Mr.  Goodwin  one  of  the  famous  per- 
sonages of  the  American  stage.  It  is  said  that, 
when  he  was  playing  in  London,  he  yearned  so 
much  for  the  home  comforts  of  Uncle  Sam's 
domain,  that  he  determined  to  found  an  American 
establishment  within  hearing,  if  not  sight,  of 
Bow-Bells.  The  strains  of  Gilbert  and  Sullivan's 
opera  must  have  been  lingering  in  his  memory, 
because  he  selected  a  property  belonging  to  the 
Lords  of  Penzance.  The  place  was  known  as 
Jackwood,  and,  according  to  Mr.  Goodwin, 
had  some  historical  connection  with  the  ancient 
[3i5] 


Nat  C.  Goodwin 

English  poem  respecting  "The  House  that  Jack 
Built." 

The  new  owner  furnished  the  house  to  suit 
his  own  notions  of  comfort,  and  provided  an 
American  buggy  to  drive  from  his  front  door  to 
the  railway  station.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but 
what  his  nationality  was  recognized  in  that 
suburb  before  twenty-four  hours  had  elapsed 
after  his  arrival. 

The  homestead  dates  from  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury. It  is  a  low,  irregular  edifice  with  thick 
walls,  roomy  stairways,  queer  passages,  and  mys- 
terious closets.  It  has  been  built  piecemeal  at 
various  times,  and  while  the  softening  hand  of 
the  years  has  united  the  various  parts  into  a  har- 
monious whole,  yet  both  walls  and  roofs  indicate 
the  constructive  efforts  of  different  minds.  Each 
part  has  a  roof  of  a  different  design,  so  that  an 
interesting  chapter  in  domestic  architecture 
could    be    drawn  from  the    roofs    alone. 

There  is  a  stable  near  the  house,  surmounted 
by  a  cupola  containing  a  clock  which  chimes  the 
hours  and  quarters.  From  the  road  a  circular 
driveway  leads  up  to  the  main  entrance  of  the 
house.  Beyond  the  buildings  are  meadows  into 
which  the  horses  and  cows  of  the  establishment 
are  turned  every  day. 

[3i6] 


Maxine  Elliott-Goodwin 

Beyond  the  meadows  are  wooded  hills  in 
which  are  little  caves,  sluggish  streams,  and 
cultivated  farmland.  Jackwood  is  an  estate  as 
well  as  a  home.  The  lords  who  formerly  owned 
it  used  it  as  a  shooting  preserve,  and  Mr.  Good- 
win has  kept  up  the  old  custom.  The  woods 
and  thickets  are  full  of  birds,  and  the  place  seems 
alive  with  rabbits.  The  immunity  they  enjoy 
from  the  outside  world  makes  them  bold.  As 
the  visitor  strolls  along  the  paths,  they  spring  up 
from  beneath  the  feet  and  hurry  away  to  the 
nearest  quickset  or  thicket.  When  the  actor 
secured  the  place,  it  was  comparatively  wild. 
He  went  to  considerable  trouble  and  expense  in 
improving  and  beautifying  the  grounds.  The 
old  paths  were  cleaned  and  widened;  new  ones 
cut  to  romantic  spots;  kiosks  erected  upon  pic- 
turesque sites;  benches  placed  beneath  shady 
trees,  or  on  the  sides  of  hills  from  which  there 
were  fine  views  of  the  landscape;  and  the  gar- 
dens, which  had  been  neglected,  were  restored 
to  their  former  high  state  of  cultivation. 

One  part  known  as  Miss  Elliott's  rose  garden 
is  the  fairest  spot  of  all.  In  it  are  the  plants 
presented  to  her  by  members  of  the  nobility  and 
royal  family,  and  around  these  are  specimens  of 
nearly  every  rose  known  to  horticulture.  The 
[317] 


Nat  C.  Goodwin 

old  English  tea-rose,  both  the  white  and  the 
blush  variety,  grows  here  in  perfection,  as  do 
the  standard  rose  tree  of  France,  the  Jacque- 
minot, the  Marechal  Niel,  the  American  Beauty 
of  this  country,  and  the  climbing  roses — white, 
pink,  and  red — of  Kent  and  Surrey.  Arbors  and 
trellises  afford  shade  to  the  visitor  and  support  to 
vines,  the  peach  and  other  wall  trees.  In  Eng- 
land there  is  a  quaint  practice  of  training  many 
fruit  trees  upon  walls  and  trellises,  which  is  al- 
most unknown  in  the  United  States.  It  enables 
the  gardener  to  secure  a  maximum  of  light  and 
ventilation  for  the  fruit,  and  to  produce  the  fine 
specimens  which  carry  off  the  prizes  in  the  agri- 
cultural county  fairs.  It  is  near  the  rose  garden 
that  Miss  Elliott  holds  tea-parties  and  levees  in 
the  afternoon,  which  are  attended  by  the  many 
friends — American,  English,  and  French — of 
the  host  and   hostess. 

The  interior  of  Jackwood  Hall  is  as  imposing 
in  its  way  as  the  Tower  of  London.  It  was 
built  at  a  time  when  the  modern  economical 
spirit  had  not  come  into  vogue.  The  walls 
would  stand  a  siege,  while  the  beams  seem  large 
and  strong  enough  to  last  a  thousand  years. 
The  wainscoting  is  massive,  and  the  floors  have 
been  worn  by  human  feet,  as  well  as  by  the  hands 
[3i8] 


Maxine    Elliott-Goodwin 

of  the  cleaner,  until  they  seem  a  work  of  art  in 
themselves.  The  balmy  climate  of  southern 
England  permits  the  doors  and  windows  to 
be  kept  open  nearly  all  the  year,  and  at  many 
casements  the  vines  and  roses  appear  to  have 
a  mad  desire  to  usurp  the  place  of  the  cur- 
tains. 

The  furnishing  of  the  house  may  be  styled 
Anglo-American.  It  has  English  substantiality, 
style,  and  even  luxury  \  but  through  it  run  num- 
berless suggestions  of  America.  Both  Mr. 
Goodwin  and  his  wife  are  patriotic,  and  carry 
their  feelings  into  their  tastes  and  environment. 
In  the  former's  "den,"  for  example,  are  all 
sorts  of  odd  Americana.  Notable  among  these 
is  his  collection  of  Indian  relics,  including 
weapons,  costumes,  pipes,  cooking  utensils, 
birch-bark  objects,  basket-work,  feather  and 
quill  ornaments,  and  even  the  trophies  of  war. 
In  another  corner  of  the  apartment  is  a  match- 
less opium  lay-out  from  Chinatown,  in  San 
Francisco.  Here  is  an  opium  pipe,  made  of 
ancient  wood,  worth  its  weight  in  gold,  fin- 
ished in  ivory,  and  embellished  with  snake-skin. 
Here  are  the  scissors,  needles,  and  other  imple- 
ments of  the  smoker,  made  of  chased  and  bur- 
nished metal.  The  opium  lamp  is  a  marvel  in 
[319] 


Nat  C.  Goodwin 

crystal  and  metal,  while  the  tray  represents  the 
finest  workmanship  of  Canton. 

"  I  don't  smoke  myself,"  said  the  host, 
"but  I  keep  the  lay-out  as  a  memento  of  the 
Golden  Gate." 

Numerous  bookcases  filled  with  books,  and 
an  extensive  portrait  gallery  of  friends,  tell  of 
the  literary  and  sociable  characteristics  of  the 
inmates. 

The  hostess's  sanctum  is  French  and  Ameri- 
can in  its  appointments.  The  furniture  is  an- 
tique, while  the  decorations  tell  of  Paris  and 
New  York.  Here  are  her  own  books,  whose 
well-worn  appearance  indicates  her  studious 
habits.  One  of  her  friends  calls  the  boudoir 
a  cc  Portia  room,"  on  account  of  the  many  ob- 
jects which  are  associated  with  that  Shakes- 
pearean heroine. 

"In  studying  the  role,"  said  Miss  Elliott, 
"  I  was  so  much  impressed  by  it  that  I  wanted 
to  obtain  tangible  expressions  of  its  character- 
istics, as  well  as  of  my  own  sentiments;  so, 
wherever  I  found  them,  I  purchased  little  knick- 
knacks  or  souvenirs  which  were  connected  with 
Portia^  c  The  Merchant  of  Venice, '  or  those 
parts  of  Italy  where  the  play  is  located." 

Statuettes  and  landscapes,  photographs  and 
[320] 


Maxine  Elliott-Goodwin 

engravings,  Venetian  jewelry  and  Italian  fila- 
gree, Roman  scarfs  and  stilettos,  weapons  and 
missals,  are  among  the  remembrances  which 
carry  the  eye  back  to  the  days  of  Shylock. 

The  drawing-room  is  a  picture  of  old-time 
customs  and  elegance.  The  heavy  chairs  and 
capacious  tables,  rich  upholstery  and  hangings, 
and  the  dark  tone  of  the  woodwork,  impress 
one  with  the  feeling  that,  if  a  group  of  eigh- 
teenth century  gallants  and  patched  and  pow- 
dered belles  came  in  through  the  wide  door- 
way, it  would  be  perfectly  in  keeping  with  the 
place. 

The  favorite  apartment  in  Jackwood  Hall  is 
the  billiard-room,  where,  every  day  when  occu- 
pied, may  be  heard  the  click  of  the  ivory  balls. 
The  game  has  a  larger  social  vogue  in  England 
than  in  America,  and  women  cultivate  and  en- 
joy it  there  to  a  greater  degree  than  here.  The 
hospitality  of  Jackwood  Hall,  generous  in  the 
days  of  the  Lords  of  Penzance,  reached  its  climax 
in  the  hands  of  its  American  owner.  Its  con- 
venience to  the  world's  metropolis  renders  it 
easy  and  pleasant  of  access,  while  its  ample 
accommodations  permit  it  to  house  a  hundred 
as  well  as  a  few. 

In  their  domestic  life  Mr.  and  Mrs,  Good- 
21  [  321  ] 


Nat  C.  Goodwin 

win  make  the  most  of  the  lighter  and  brighter 
phases  of  existence. 

"Some  part  of  a  man's  daily  life,"  said  the 
host,  "should  be  devoted  to  social  enjoyment. 
All  work  and  no  play  makes  Jack  at  Jackwood 
a  dull  boy.  Life  has  enough  of  the  farther  in 
re,  and  needs  a  little  more  of  the  suaviter  in 
modo,  and  in  my  own  way  I  endeavor  to  con- 
form myself  to  this  principle." 

Upon  the  stage  Mr.  Goodwin's  first  charac- 
teristic is  versatility.  He  has  enough  talent  to 
be  great  in  any  one  of  at  least  five  different 
types  of  histrionic  art.  He  began  his  career  in 
1874,  and  from  that  time  on  has  moved  stead- 
ily upward  until  to-day,  when  he  occupies  a  place 
in  the  very  front  rank  of  the  Anglo-American 
theatre.  The  first  chapter  of  his  stage  life  was 
as  a  burlesquer  and  vaudeville  artist.  Here  he 
became  very  popular.  In  "Evangeline,"  he 
was  famous  as  Captain  Dietrich.  He  then  de- 
lighted the  country  with  "Hobbies,"  "Cinder- 
ella at  School,"  and  the  light  opera  of  "The 
Corsair."  During  the  eighties  he  displayed 
himself  in  new  lines,  when  he  appeared  in 
"  The  Member  for  Slocum,"  and  "The  Black 
Flag."  In  the  same  decade  he  demonstrated 
the  possession  of  the  qualities  necessary  in  the 
[322] 


Maxine  Elliott-Goodwin 

presentation  of  serious  parts  by  appearing  as  the 
Grave-digger^  in  "  Hamlet";  Modus,  in  "The 
Hunchback  "  ;  Marc  Antony  in  "Julius  Caesar," 
and  "A  Royal  Revenge." 

In  the  nineties  his  performances  in  "A 
Gilded  Fool,"  "In  Mizzoura,"  "  David  Gar- 
rick,"  "Lend  Me  Five  Shillings,"  "Ambi- 
tion," "The  Rivals,"  "An  American  Citi- 
zen, "  "  Nathan  Hale, ' '  and  i c  The  Cowboy  and 
the  Lady"  were  extraordinary,  both  for  their 
admirable  workmanship  and  for  the  new  lights 
they  threw  upon  the  man's  genius.  His  latest 
successes  have  been  in  "  The  Merchant  of 
Venice  "  and  "  When  We  Were  Twenty-one. " 

Beneath  his  varying  roles  may  be  detected  the 
same  poetic  power  and  strong  grasp  which 
mark  Joseph  Jefferson,  Frank  Keenan,  and 
John  Hare.  Jefferson  made  the  Catskills  vaga- 
bond into  a  character  of  exquisite  sweetness; 
Keenan  converted  the  humble  backwoods  law- 
yer, Grigsby,  into  a  sublime  hero;  while  Hare 
transformed  the  most  commonplace  parts  into 
symbols  of  universal  significance. 

Maxine   Elliott  labors    under  the  advantage 

and   disadvantage  of  being   the    most  beautiful 

woman   upon   the  stage.      While  beauty  is  one 

of  nature's  greatest  gifts,  it  is  too  apt   to   act 

[323] 


Nat  C.  Goodwin 

as  a  preventive  of  growth  along  mental  and 
professional  lines.  She  began  her  apprentice- 
ship at  the  very  bottom  of  the  ladder,  as  a 
supernumerary  in  a  New  York  company.  She 
climbed  step  by  step,  improving  in  her  art,  and 
displaying  a  corresponding  intellectual  develop- 
ment. By  1893  sne  na^  risen  to  De  a  recog- 
nized leading  woman  of  more  than  average 
ability.  Then  came  a  pleasant  surprise  to  the 
public  when  she  appeared  as  Silvia,  in  "Two 
Gentlemen  of  Verona";  Hermia,  in  "The 
Midsummer  Night's  Dream"  ;  and  Olivia,  in 
"Twelfth  Night."  In  these  she  evidenced 
the  possession  of  high  ideals  in  her  art  and  a 
strong  power  of  poetic  interpretation.  Since 
that  time  her  leading  parts  have  been  in  "Nathan 
Hale,"  "The  Cowboy  and  the  Lady," 
"An  American  Citizen,"  "The  Merchant  of 
Venice,"  and  "When  We  Were  Twenty- 
one. 

In  their  domestic,  as  in  their  professional,  life, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Goodwin  move  along  the  same 
lines.  They  are  enthusiasts  in  respect  to  dra- 
matic art  and  its  literature.  Sociable  and  hos- 
pitable in  nature,  they  attract  and  enjoy  the 
society  of  the  intellectual  and  cultured.  They 
seem  to  be  complementary  to  each  other.  Be- 
[324] 


Maxine  Elliott-Goodwin 

low  the  fun  (and  perhaps  a  part  of  it)  which 
marks  the  husband  is  an  underlying  vein  of 
melancholy ;  and  beneath  her  poetic  and  pathetic 
qualities  is  a  strong  substratum  of  sunshine  and 
optimism.  The  two  qualities  match  in  every 
respect. 

Mr.  Goodwin  is  still  a  young  man,  and 
his  work  in  the  past  seems  to  promise  still 
greater  performance  in  the  future.  Whether 
this  will  be  along  Shakespearean,  romantic,  or 
native  lines  of  characterization  it  is  impossible 
to  determine.  Yet,  whatever  course  his  growth 
may  take,  it  is  certain  that  he  is  to  become  one 
of  the  leaders  of  the  English-speaking  stage. 


[325] 


Index 


Indi 


ex 


A  CTOR'S  home  life,  7 
**■    Actor's  hospitality,  7 
Actors'  knitting-,  45 
11  Adventures  of  Lady  Ursula, 
The,"  23 

Virginia  Harned-Sothern  in,23 
Albani,  Madame,  311 
Aldrich,  Thomas  Bailey,  311 
Allen,  C.  Leslie,  144 
Allen,  Viola,  139 
Alma-Tadema,  311 
"Ambition,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
44  American  Citizen,  An,"  324 

Maxine  Elliott  in,  324 
"American  Cousin,  Our,"  270 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  270 
M  American  Minister,  The,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
American  Theatre  in  1800  and 

1900,  3 
Ancient  Order  of  Full  Moons, 

97 
Anderson   de    Navarro,  Mary, 

288,  305 
Aristophanes,  141 
Arnold,  Sir  Edwin,  175 
44  As  You  Like  It,"  171,  179,  288 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  171,  179 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
M  Auctioneer,  The,"  51,  133 

Marie  Bates  in,  51 

David  Warfield  in,  133 
Audubon,  74 
Ayton,  Sir  Robert,  88 
Aytoun,  William  E.,  88 

BAILLIE,  Joanna,  88 
Balzac,  172,  264 
"  Barbara  Frietchie,"  180 

Miss  Marlowe  in,  180 
Barnum,  Phineas  T.,  311 


Barrett,  Lawrence,  20,  21,  288, 

289-295 
Bates,  Marie,  43 
11  Bauble  Shop,  The,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 
Beattie,  James,  88 
44  Beau  Brummel,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  as,  36 
Beaudelaire,  206 
Bernhardt,  Sara,  311 
Bingham,  Amelia,  199 
Bingham.  Lloyd,  204 
14  Black  Flag,  The,"  322 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  322 
Bonington,  32 
Booth,  Edwin,  288,  289,  295 
Boucher,  Francois,  31 
44  Broken  Hearts,"  195 

Miss  Russell  in,  195 
11  Broken  Seal,  The,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
tl  Brother  John,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
Brown,  Dr.  Augustus  H.,  115 
Brown,  Mrs.  May  Robson,  115 
Browning,  Robert,  311 
Burns,  Robert,  88,  244 
Byron,  Lord,  47 


o 


AMERON,  Beatrice  (Mans- 
field),  27 
44  Camille,"  248 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Captain  Swift,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Cardinal  Manning,  311 
Carlyle,  Thomas,  175 
Carriera,  Rosalba,  31 
Carroll,  Lewis,  172 
44  Catherine,"  65,  195 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 

329] 


Index 


Cazin,  156, 159 
Chicago  Auditorium,  4 
41  Christian,  The,"  145 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
"Church  Around  the  Corner, 

The  Little,"  278 
41  Cinderella  at  School,"  322 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  322 
44  City  Directory,  The,"  133 
44  Climbers,  The,"  210 

Miss  Bingham  in,  210 
Coleridge,  S.  T.,  49 
44  Comedy  of  Errors,  The,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
Conway,   F.   B.,    Stock    Com- 
pany, 51 
Cope,  74 
Corot,  156, 157 
44  County  Fair,  The,"  51 

Marie  Bates  in,  51 
Court  Farm,  305 
44  Courtship  of  Leonie,    The," 
247 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
44  Cowboy  and  the  Lady,  The," 
221 

Burr  Mcintosh  in,  221 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Crane,  William  H.,  293 
44  Cricket  on  the  Hearth,  The," 
274 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  274 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  17,  207 
Crow's     Nest,     the    home    of 

Joseph  Jefferson,  274 
44  Cuckoo,  The,"  210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 
44  Cymbeline,"  171 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  171 
44  Cyrano  de  Bergerac,"  16,32,36 

Richard  Mansfield  as,  36 


DALY,  Augustin,  141,  246 
44  Dancing  Girl,  The,"  23 
Virginia  Harned  in,  23 

[330] 


44  Dan  Mulligan,"  97 

Edward  Harrigan  as,  97 
D'Arville,  206 
44  Daughter  of  Roland, The,v3io 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
44  David  Garrick,"    18,  31,  195, 
323 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  David  Harum,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
Davidge,  William,  Jr.,  288 
Delpy,  156 

De  Musset,  Alfred,  206 
Denman  Thompson,  234 
Dickens,  Charles,  47,  172, 264 
44  Dr.  Jekyll  and  Mr.  Hyde,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
44  Doll's  House,  The,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 
44  Don  Juan,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
Don  Quixote,  175,  191 
Drummond,  William,  88 
Dumas,  Alexandre,  264 

EDESON,  Robert,  253 
44  Elaine,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Elliott-Goodwin,  Maxine,  315 
Emerson,  R.  W.,  175,  264 
44  Engaged,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Escurial,  The,  191 
44  Esmeralda,"  144 

Viola  Allen  in,  144 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Euripides,  141 
44  Evadne,"  310 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
44  Evangeline,"  301,  322 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 

FALSTAFF,"  245 
J.  H.  Hackett  as,  245 
44  Faint  Heart  Never  Won  Fair 
Lady,"  310 
Mary  Anderson  in,  310 


Index 


"  Fatal  Card,  The,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
"Fazio,"  310 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
44  Femme  du  Claude,  La,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 
Field,  Eugene,  135, 161,  162,  244 
44  First  Gentleman  of  Europe, 
The,"  248 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
Fiske,  Harrison  Grey,  72 
Fiske,  Mrs.  Minnie  Maddern,  68 
Footwear,  Collection  of,  64 
44  Francesca  da  Rimini,"  288 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  French  Flats,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 

BARRETT    O'MAGH," 


VJ 


23S 


Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 
Garrick,  David,  18,  31,  125,  323 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Gautier,  Thdophile,  206 
44  Geisha  Girl,  The,"  257 
Gilbert  and  Sullivan,  315 
44  Gilded  Fool,  A,"  323 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Gladstone,  Hon.  Wm.  E.,  311 
44  Girl  and  the  Judge,  The,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Glen  Cottage,   home   of  Mrs. 

Fiske,  70 
44Gloriana,"  124 

May  Robson  in,  124 
Goldsmith,  Oliver,  48 
Goodwin,  Maxine  Elliott,  315 
Goodwin,  Nat  C,  315 
Gosse,  Edmund,  311 
Green,  Mrs.  C.  H.,  105 
Grimaldi,  153 
44  Guy  Mannering,"  310 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 

T_T  ACKETT,  Mrs.  Clara  C, 
J-  -■-     242 

[ 


Hackett,  James  Henry,  245,  272 
Hackett,  James  K.,  239 
Hackett,  Mary  Mannering,  239 
44  Hamlet,"  23,  288,  323 

E.  H.  Sothern  as,  23 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 

Otis  Skinner  as,  288 
Hare,  John,  323 

Harned,  Virginia  (Sothern),  n 
Harrigan,  Edward,  93 
44  Harum,  David,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
Hathaway,  Ann,  22 
Hawthorne,  Nathaniel,  264 
44  Hazel  Kirke,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  Heart  and  Hands,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
44  Hearts  are  Trumps,"  210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 
44  Heir-at-Law,  The,"  274 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  274 
44  Henrietta,  The,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
44  Hero  and  Leander,"  247 

Mary  Mannering  in,  247 
44  Highest  Bidder,  The,"  23 

E.  H.  Sothern  in,"  23 
Highmount,  167 

44  His    Excellency     the     Gov- 
ernor," 210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 
44  His  Grace    de    Grammont," 
288 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Hobbes,  Miss,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  Hobbies,"  322 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  322 
Hogg,  James,  88 
Holmes,  O.  W.,  16 
44  Home  Secretary,  The,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
44  Hoop  of  Gold,  The,"  124 

May  Robson  in,  124 
Hugo,  Victor,  206,  311 

33l] 


Index 


H  Hunchback,  The,"  310 
Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 

Hutton,  Laurence,  311 

M  Hypatia,"  175 

"  TFI  were  King,"  23 
■*        E.  H.  Sothern  in,  23 

44  In  Mizzoura,"  221,  323 
Burr  Mcintosh  in,  221 
Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 

44  In  the  Palace  of  the  King,' 
14s 
Viola  Allen  in,  145 

Ingalls,  J.  J.,  207 

44  Ingomar,"  171,  179,  253,  310 
Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
Julia  Marlowe  in,  171,  179 

44  Irish  Artist,  The,"  235 
Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 

Irish  genius,  229 

Irving,  Sir  Henry,  77,  311 

Irving,  Washington,  273 
Alludes  to  Jefferson,  273 
Life  and  Letters  of,  272 
New  York  residence,  55 

JAMES,  Henry,  311 
Janauschek,  Mme.,  81,  288 
Jefferson,  Joseph,  painting  by, 

Domestic  life  of,  269,  288,  323 
44  Janice  Meredith,"  248 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
44  Jester,  The  King's,"  288,  289 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288,  289 
44  John  a'Dreams,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
44  John,  Brother,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
Johnson,  Dr.,  47 
Jonson,  Ben,  22,  47 
44  Julius  Caesar,"  288,  323 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 

[ 


T^EENAN,  Frank,  323 
•*■*■    44  King's  Jester,  The,"  288, 
289 
Otis  Skinner  in,  288,  289 
Kipling,  Rudyard,  174 
Kirkconnell,  88 
Knellers,  Sir  Godfrey,  35 

44  T   ADY  BOUNTIFUL,"  124 

-■— '  May  Robson  in,  124 
44  Lady  Gladys,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
44  Lady  Margaret,"  210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 
44  Lady  of  Lyons,  The,"  23 

E.  H.  Sothern  in,  23 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
Lamartine,  206 

Laocoon,  Sothern's  drawing,  19 
44  Lavender,  Old,"  98 

Edward  Harrigan  as,  98 
Lawrence,  Sir  Thomas,  33 
44  Ledges,  The,"  Annie  Russell's 

home,  193 
Lely,  Sir  Peter,  33 
44  Lend  Me  Five  Shillings,"  323 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
44  Lethe,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  Liberty  Hall,"  124 

May  Robson  in,  124 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
Lind,  Jenny,  311 
44  Little    Church    Around    the 

Corner,  The,"  278 
44  Little  I  Saw  of  Cuba,  The," 

218 
44  Little  Minister,  The,"  263 

Robert  Edeson  in,  263 
Lochmuller,  98 
Lockhart,  John  G.,  88 
Longfellow,  H.  W.,  244, 311 
Lope  de  Vega,  141 
Lotta,  246 
44  Love,"  310 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
332] 


Index 


Lovelace,  Sir  Richard,  47 
Lowell,  James  Russell,  311 

A/TACAULAY,  Thomas    B., 

44  Macbeth,"  179,  288,  310 

Otis  Skinner  as,  288 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
Mackaye,  Steele,  141 
McCullough,  John,  20,  21,  145, 

288,  289 
Mcintosh,  Burr,  213 
11  Madame  Butterfly,"  257 
M  Madame  Sans-Gene,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
Maddern,  Mrs.  Minnie  (Fiske), 

68 
Maeterlinck,  290 
14  Magda,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Make  Way  for  the  Ladies," 
124 

May  Robson  in,  124 
Mannering,    Mary    (Hackett), 

239 
Mansfield,  Richard,  27,  77 
Mansfield,   Beatrice   Cameron, 

27 
Marbury,  Elizabeth,  56,  57,  61 
44  Marie  Deloche,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  as,  76 
Marlowe,  Julia,  167 
44  Marriage,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 
44  Mary  Stuart,"  288 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Masqueraders,  The,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
44  Mavourneen,"  235 

Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 
44  Mayflower,  The,"  247 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
Mayo,  Frank,  141 


Meredith,  Owen,  172 
44  Member    for   Slocum,   The," 
322 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  322 
44  Merry  World,  The,"  133 
44  Michael  and  His  Lost  Angel," 
H5 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
44  Mikado,  The,"  257 
Miner,  Annie  O'Neill,  82 
Miner,  Henry  Clay,  82 
Miner,  44  Judge"  Jack,  84 
44  Minstrel  of  Clare,  The,"  235 

Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 
44  Miss  Decima,"  234 

Chauncey  Olcott  in,  234 
Modjeska,  Helene,  81,  288 
Monchablon,  156 
"Monsieur,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
44  Monsieur  Beaucaire,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
44  Moths,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 

NADEAU,  Gustave,  206 
44  Nathan  Hale,"  323 

Maxine  Elliott  in,  324 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Nattier,  57 
44  Nero,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
"New  Woman,  The,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  Nicholas  Nickleby,"  274 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  274 
44  Night's  Session,  A,"  124 

May  Robson  in,  124 
Nye,  Bill,  161 

OLCOTT,  Chauncey,  225 
44  Old  Homestead,  The," 
234 
Chauncey  Olcott  in,  234 
44  Old  Lavender,"  98 
Oliver  Cromwell,  bust  of,  207 

333] 


Index 


Oliver  Cromwell's  Black  Jack, 

16 
Oliver  Cromwell's  Jack  boot,  62 
Omar     Khayyam,     Warfield's 

love  for,  135 
Stage  popularity,  244 
O'Neill,  Annie  (Mrs.  Miner),  81 
Orchard,  The,  155 
Order  of  Full  Moons,  Ancient, 

97 
41  Othello,"  288 

Otis  Skinner  as,  288 
Otis  Skinner,  283 
44  Our  American  Cousin,"  270 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  270 
44  Our  Boarding  House,"  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  301 
44  Our  Society,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 

44  PARISIAN  Romance,  A," 

r     36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
44  Passion's  Slave,"  209 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  209 
44Petrus  Stuyvesant,"  299 

William  H.  Crane  in,  299 
Phillips,  Watts,  19 
44  Pinafore,"  178,  179,  195 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  178 

Annie  Russell  in,   195 
,4Pink  Mask,  The,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
Pitou,  Augustus,  234 
Poe,  Edgar  A.,  244 
44  Poor  Gentleman,  The,"  274 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  274 
44  Prince  Karl,"  36 

Annie  O'Neill  in,  82 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
44  Princess    and    the   Butterfly, 
The,"  247 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
44  Prisoner  of  Zenda,  The,"  247 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 

[ 


4  Private  Secretary,  The,"  124, 
246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 

May  Robson  in,  124 
4  Pygmalion  and  Galatea,"  310 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 

4  /^VUEEN  of    Liars,  The," 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 
44  Queen's  Necklace,  The,"  246 
J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 

RACHEL,  181 
Raleigh,  47 
Raymond,  John  T.,  288 
Rehan,  Arthur,  246 
44  Richard  III.,"  20,  36,  179 

E.  H.  Sothern  in,  20 

Richard  Mansfield  as,  36 
Riley,    James   Whitcomb,   155, 

161 
44  Rimini,  Francesca  da,"  288 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Rip  Van  Winkle,"   179,    271- 

275 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  179 
Ristori,  181,  311 
44  Rivals,  The,"  274,  323 

Joseph  Jefferson  in,  274 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Robson,  May,  115 
44  Romance  of  Athlone,  A,"  235 

Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 
Romeo  and  Juliet,  178,  179,  190, 
241,  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  241,  246 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  178,  179 

Mary  Anderson  in,  310 
Romney,  George,  31 
44  Rosemary,"  288 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288 
44  Royal  Family,  The,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
44  Royal  Revenge,  A,"  323 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 

334] 


Index 


Rudersdorf ,  Madame,  32 
Rupert  of  Hentzau,  247 
J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 
Russell,  Annie,  185 

C  ALVINI,  Tommaso,  145,  311 
^    Scanlon,  William  J.,  234 
Schlegel's  Dramatic  Literature, 

142 
Schreyer,  156,  158 
Scott,  Sir  Walter,  47 
41  Sealed  Instructions,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
"Senator,  The,"  296,  301 

William  H.  Crane  in,  296 
11  Shadows   of   a    Great   City, 
The,"  109 
Annie  Ward  Tiffany  in,  109 
Sheridan,  Richard  B.,  48 
Sheridan,  William  E.,  288 
Shylock,  32,  133 

Richard  Mansfield  as,  36 
"Sister  Mary,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 
Skinner,  Charles  M.,  287,  289 
Skinner,  Otis,  273 
"Snowball,"  246 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  246 
"  Soldiers  of  Fortune,"  263 

Robert  Edeson  in,  263 
Sophocles,  141 

Sothern,  Edward  Askew,  17,  18 
Sothern,  Edward  H.,  n 
Sothern,  Virginia  Harned,  11 
"  Sowing  the  Wind,"  145 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
Stevenson,   Robert  Louis,  161, 

172 
Stratford-on-Avon,  22 
"Stuyvesant,  Petrus,"  299 

William  H.  Crane,  299 
"  Sue,"  195 

Annie  Russell  in,  195 
Sully-Prudhomme,  206  ' 

"  Sweet  and  Twenty,"  83 
Annie  O'Neill  in,  83 

[335 


"Sweet  Inniscarra,"  235 

Chauncey  Olcott  in,  235 
Swinburne,  172,  244 

T^ENNYSON,     Alfred,     244, 

A      258,  311 
Terry,  Ellen,  77,  311 
"  Tess,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 
Thackeray,  W.  M.,  47,  264 
Thatched  House  Club,  202 
Thaulow,  156 
"  Thermidor,"  65 

Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 
Thompson,  Denman,  234 
Thoreau,  74,  172 
"  Three  Guardsmen,"  8 
Tiffany,  Annie  Ward  (Mrs.  C. 

H.  Green),  105 
"Tree   of    Knowledge,  The," 
247 

J.  K.  Hackett  in,  247 
"Trelawney  of  the  Wells,"  248 

Mary  Mannering  in,  248 
"  Trilby,"  23,  221 

Burr  Mcintosh  in,  221 

Virginia  Harned  in,  23 
Troyon,  156,  158 
"  Twelfth  Night,"  171,  179 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  179 
"  Two  Gentlemen  of  Verona," 
524 

Maxine  Elliott  in,  324 
"  Two  Little  Vagrants,"  210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 

"  T  TNDER  Southern  Skies," 
^     221 

Burr  Mcintosh  in,  221 
"  Under  the  Red  Robe,"  145 

Viola  Allen  in,  145 
"  Under  Two  Flags,"  221 

Burr  Mcintosh  in,  221 

"  T7AGABOND,Villon,  The," 
v      288,  289 
Otis  Skinner  in,  288,  289 

] 


Index 


Van  Horn,  156 
44  Vanity  Fair,"  76 

Mrs.  Fiske  in,  76 
VanMarcke,  156 
Vega,  Lope  de,  141 
Velasquez,  191 
44  Venice,  Merchant  of,"  320,  323 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
Vere,  Aubrey  de,  311 
M  Vie  Parisienne,  La,"  36 

Richard  Mansfield  in,  36 
"Vif,  The,"  296 
"Villon,  the  Vagabond,"  288, 
289 

Otis  Skinner  in,  288,  289 

T17ARD,  Mrs.  Humphry,  311 
*  »      Warfield,  David,  127 
Washington,  George,  235 
44  Way  of  the  World,  The,"  65 
Elsie  de  Wolfe  in,  65 


11  When   Knighthood    Was    in 
Flower,"  171-173 

Julia  Marlowe  in,  171 
41  When    We    Were    Twenty- 
One,"  323 

Maxine  Elliott  in,  324 

Nat  C.  Goodwin  in,  323 
44  White  Heather,  The,"  210 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  210 
44  WhiteHorseTavern,The,"209 

Amelia  Bingham  in,  209 
Whitman,  Walt,  172,  244 
Wilson,  Francis,  153 
Winter,  William,  311 

YEAMANS,  Annie,  81 
44  Yorick's  Love,"  288 
Otis  Skinner  in,  288 

ZAZA,"  51 
Marie  Bates  in,  51 
Ziem,  156 


[336] 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 
LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 

~           mMor'^QFC 

lyr/iar  oyr  w 

RETURNED  TO 
,      MATH  .-STAT.  LVL 

APR  r   mf 

FEB  09  K 

H^AiBSVttO 

MAR  2  1  1995 

C    /wULATiOiM  L/cF 

* 

LD  21A-50m-9,'58                              TT   . General  Library 
(6889sl0)476B                                   University  of  California 
v                 '                                                           Berkeley 

U.C.BERKELEY  LIBRARIES 


CDS133Dmi 


*C151518 


'■'^J   ,1  -1:    ?'* 


lM&&&&k*> 


